Chapter VII: Part I: The Parts of Speech (4)

Text size

10. The child had a native grace that does not invariably coexist
with faultless beauty.

11. I think a mere gent (which I take to be the lowest form of
civilization) better than a howling, whistling, clucking,
stamping, jumping, tearing savage.

12. Every fowl whom Nature has taught to dip the wing in water.

13. They seem to be lines pretty much of a length.

14. Only yesterday, but what a gulf between now and then!

15. Not a brick was made but some man had to think of the making
of that brick.

16. The class of power, the working heroes, the Cortes, the
Nelson, the Napoleon, see that this is the festivity and
permanent celebration of such as they; that fashion is funded
talent.

VERBS AND VERBALS..

VERBS.

[Sidenote: _Verb,--the word of the sentence._]

199. The term _verb_ is from the Latin _verbum_ meaning _word_: hence it is _the_ word of a sentence. A thought cannot be expressed without a verb. When the child cries, "Apple!" it means, _See_ the apple! or I _have_ an apple! In the mariner's shout, "A sail!" the meaning is, "Yonder _is_ a sail!"

Sentences are in the form of declarations, questions, or commands; and none of these can be put before the mind without the use of a verb.

[Sidenote: _One group or a group of words._]

200. The verb may not always be a single word. On account of the lack of inflections, _verb phrases_ are very frequent. Hence the verb may consist of:

(1) _One word_; as, "The young man _obeyed_."

(2) _Several words of verbal nature, making one expression_; as, (_a_) "Some day it _may be considered_ reasonable," (_b_) "Fearing lest he _might have been anticipated_."

(3) _One or more verbal words united with other words to compose one verb phrase_: as in the sentences, (_a_) "They knew well that this woman _ruled over_ thirty millions of subjects;" (_b_) "If all the flummery and extravagance of an army _were done away with_, the money could be made to go much further;" (_c_) "It is idle cant to pretend anxiety for the better distribution of wealth until we can devise means by which this preying upon people of small incomes _can be put a stop to_."

In (_a_), a verb and a preposition are used as one verb; in (_b_), a verb, an adverb, and a preposition unite as a verb; in (_c_), an article, a noun, a preposition, are united with verbs as one verb phrase.

[Sidenote: _Definition and caution._]

201. A verb is a word used as a predicate, to say something to or about some person or thing. In giving a definition, we consider a verb as one word.

Now, it is indispensable to the nature of a verb that it is "a word used as a predicate." Examine the sentences in Sec. 200: In (1), _obeyed_ is a predicate; in (2, _a_), _may be considered_ is a unit in doing the work of one predicate; in (2, _b_), _might have been anticipated_ is also one predicate, but _fearing_ is not a predicate, hence is not a verb; in (3, _b_), _to go_ is no predicate, and not a verb; in (3, _c_), _to pretend_ and _preying_ have something of verbal nature in expressing action in a faint and general way, but cannot be predicates.

In the sentence, "_Put_ money in thy purse," _put_ is the predicate, with some word understood; as, "Put _thou_ money in thy purse."

VERBS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO MEANING AND USE.

TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE VERBS.

[Sidenote: _The nature of the transitive verb._]

202. By examining a few verbs, it may be seen that not all verbs are used alike. All do not express action: some denote state or condition. Of those expressing action, all do not express it in the same way; for example, in this sentence from Bulwer,--"The proud lone _took_ care to conceal the anguish she _endured_; and the pride of woman _has_ an hypocrisy which _can deceive_ the most penetrating, and _shame_ the most astute,"--every one of the verbs in Italics has one or more words before or after it, representing something which it influences or controls. In the first, lone _took_ what? answer, _care_; _endured_ what? _anguish_; etc. Each influences some object, which may be a person, or a material thing, or an idea. _Has_ takes the object _hypocrisy_; _can deceive_ has an object, _the most penetrating_; (can) _shame_ also has an object, _the most astute_.

In each case, the word following, or the object, is necessary to the completion of the action expressed in the verb.

All these are called transitive verbs, from the Latin _transire_, which means _to go over_. Hence

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

203. A transitive verb is one which must have an object to complete its meaning, and to receive the action expressed.

[Sidenote: _The nature of intransitive verbs._]

204. Examine the verbs in the following paragraph:--

She _sprang up_ at that thought, and, taking the staff which
always guided her steps, she _hastened_ to the neighboring shrine
of Isis. Till she _had been_ under the guardianship of the kindly
Greek, that staff _had sufficed_ to conduct the poor blind girl
from corner to corner of Pompeii.--BULWER

In this there are some verbs unlike those that have been examined. _Sprang_, or _sprang up_, expresses action, but it is complete in itself, does not affect an object; _hastened_ is similar in use; _had been_ expresses condition, or state of being, and can have no object; _had sufficed_ means _had been sufficient_, and from its meaning cannot have an object.

Such verbs are called intransitive (not crossing over). Hence

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

205. An intransitive verb is one which is complete in itself, or which is completed by other words without requiring an object.

[Sidenote: _Study_ use, _not_ form, _of verbs here._]

206. Many verbs can be either transitive or intransitive, according to their use in the sentence, It can be said, "The boy _walked_ for two hours," or "The boy _walked_ the horse;" "The rains _swelled_ the river," or "The river _swelled_ because of the rain;" etc.

The important thing to observe is, many words must be distinguished as transitive or intransitive by _use_, not by _form_.

207. Also verbs are sometimes made transitive by prepositions. These may be (1) compounded with the verb; or (2) may follow the verb, and be used as an integral part of it: for example,--

Asking her pardon for having _withstood_ her.--SCOTT.

I can wish myself no worse than to have it all to _undergo_ a
second time.--KINGSLEY.

A weary gloom in the deep caverns of his eyes, as of a child that
has _outgrown_ its playthings.--HAWTHORNE.

It is amusing to walk up and down the pier and _look at_ the
countenances passing by.--B. TAYLOR.

He was at once so out of the way, and yet so sensible, that I
loved, _laughed at_, and pitied him.--GOLDSMITH.

My little nurse told me the whole matter, which she had cunningly
_picked out_ from her mother.--SWIFT.

Exercises.

(_a_) Pick out the transitive and the intransitive verbs in the following:--

1. The women and children collected together at a distance.

2. The path to the fountain led through a grassy savanna.

3. As soon as I recovered my senses and strength from so sudden a surprise, I started back out of his reach where I stood to view him; he lay quiet whilst I surveyed him.

4. At first they lay a floor of this kind of tempered mortar on the ground, upon which they deposit a layer of eggs.

5. I ran my bark on shore at one of their landing places, which was a sort of neck or little dock, from which ascended a sloping path or road up to the edge of the meadow, where their nests were; most of them were deserted, and the great thick whitish eggshells lay broken and scattered upon the ground.

6. Accordingly I got everything on board, charged my gun, set sail cautiously, along shore. As I passed by Battle Lagoon, I began to tremble.

7. I seized my gun, and went cautiously from my camp: when I had advanced about thirty yards, I halted behind a coppice of orange trees, and soon perceived two very large bears, which had made their way through the water and had landed in the grove, and were advancing toward me.

(_b_) Bring up sentences with five transitive and five intransitive verbs.

VOICE, ACTIVE AND PASSIVE.

[Sidenote: _Meaning of active voice._]

208. As has been seen, transitive verbs are the only kind that can express action so as to go over to an object. This implies three things,--the agent, or person or thing acting; the verb representing the action; the person or object receiving the act.

In the sentence, "We reached the village of Sorgues by dusk, and accepted the invitation of an old dame to lodge at her inn," these three things are found: the actor, or agent, is expressed by _we_; the action is asserted by _reached_ and _accepted_; the things acted upon are _village_ and _invitation_. Here the subject is represented as doing something. The same word is the subject and the agent. This use of a transitive verb is called the active voice.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

209. The active voice is that form of a verb which represents the subject as acting; or

The active voice is that form of a transitive verb which makes the _subject_ and the _agent_ the same word.

[Sidenote: _A question._]

210. Intransitive verbs are _always active voice_. Let the student explain why.

[Sidenote: _Meaning of passive voice._]

211. In the assertion of an action, it would be natural to suppose, that, instead of always representing the subject as acting upon some person or thing, it must often happen that the subject is spoken of as _acted upon_; and the person or thing acting may or may not be expressed in the sentence: for example,--

All infractions of love and equity in our social relations are
speedily punished. They are punished by fear.--EMERSON.

Here the subject _infractions_ does nothing: it represents the object toward which the action of _are punished_ is directed, yet it is the subject of the same verb. In the first sentence the agent is not expressed; in the second, _fear_ is the agent of the same action.

So that in this case, instead of having the agent and subject the same word, we have the _object_ and _subject_ the same word, and the agent may be omitted from the statement of the action.

_Passive_ is from the Latin word _patior_, meaning _to endure_ or _suffer_; but in ordinary grammatical use _passive_ means _receiving an action_.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

212. The passive voice is that form of the verb which represents the subject as being acted upon; or--

The passive voice is that form of the verb which represents the _subject_ and the _object_ by the same word.

Exercises.

(_a_) Pick out the verbs in the active and the passive voice:--

1. In the large room some forty or fifty students were walking about while the parties were preparing.

2. This was done by taking off the coat and vest and binding a great thick leather garment on, which reached to the knees.

3. They then put on a leather glove reaching nearly to the shoulder, tied a thick cravat around the throat, and drew on a cap with a large visor.

4. This done, they were walked about the room a short time; their faces all this time betrayed considerable anxiety.

5. We joined the crowd, and used our lungs as well as any.

6. The lakes were soon covered with merry skaters, and every afternoon the banks were crowded with spectators.

7. People were setting up torches and lengthening the rafts which had been already formed.

8. The water was first brought in barrels drawn by horses, till some officer came and opened the fire plug.

9. The exclusive in fashionable life does not see that he excludes himself from enjoyment, in the attempt to appropriate it.

(_b_) Find sentences with five verbs in the active and five in the passive voice.

MOOD.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

213. The word _mood_ is from the Latin _modus_, meaning _manner_, _way_, _method_. Hence, when applied to verbs,--

Mood means the manner of conceiving and expressing action or being of some subject.

[Sidenote: _The three ways._]

214. There are three chief ways of expressing action or being:--

(1) As a fact; this may be a question, statement, or assumption.

(2) As doubtful, or merely conceived of in the mind.

(3) As urged or commanded.

INDICATIVE MOOD.

[Sidenote: _Deals with facts._]

215. The term _indicative_ is from the Latin _indicare_ (to declare, or assert). The indicative represents something as a fact,--

[Sidenote: _Affirms or denies._]

(1) _By declaring a thing to be true or not to be true_; thus,--

Distinction _is_ the consequence, never the object, of a great
mind.--ALLSTON.

I _do not remember_ when or by whom I _was taught_ to read;
because I _cannot_ and never _could recollect_ a time when I
_could not read_ my Bible.--D. WEBSTER.

[Sidenote: _Assumed as a fact._]

[Sidenote: _Caution._]

(2) _By assuming a thing to be true_ without declaring it to be so. This kind of indicative clause is usually introduced by _if_ (meaning _admitting that, granting that_, etc.), _though, although_, etc. Notice that the action is not merely conceived as possible; it is assumed to be a fact: for example,--

If the penalties of rebellion hung over an unsuccessful contest;
if America was yet in the cradle of her political existence; if
her population little exceeded two millions; if she was without
government, without fleets or armies, arsenals or magazines,
without military knowledge,--still her citizens had a just and
elevated sense of her rights.--A. HAMILTON.

(3) _By asking a question to find out some fact_; as,--

Is private credit the friend and patron of industry?--HAMILTON.

With respect to novels what shall I say?--N. WEBSTER.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

216 .The indicative mood is that form of a verb which represents a thing as a fact, or inquires about some fact.

SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD.

[Sidenote: _Meaning of the word._]

217. _Subjunctive_ means _subjoined_, or joined as dependent or subordinate to something else.

[Sidenote: _This meaning is misleading._]

If its original meaning be closely adhered to, we must expect every dependent clause to have its verb in the subjunctive mood, and every clause _not_ dependent to have its verb in some other mood.

But this is not the case. In the quotation from Hamilton (Sec. 215, 2) several subjoined clauses introduced by _if_ have the indicative mood, and also independent clauses are often found having the verb in the subjunctive mood.

[Sidenote: _Cautions._]

Three cautions will be laid down which must be observed by a student who wishes to understand and use the English subjunctive:--

(1) You cannot tell it always by the form of the word. The main difference is, that the subjunctive has no _-s_ as the ending of the present tense, third person singular; as, "If he _come_."

(2) The fact that its clause is dependent or is introduced by certain words will not be a safe rule to guide you.

(3) The _meaning_ of the verb itself must be keenly studied.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

218. The subjunctive mood is that form or use of the verb which expresses action or being, not as a fact, but as merely conceived of in the mind.

Subjunctive in Independent Clauses.

I. Expressing a Wish.

219. The following are examples of this use:--

Heaven _rest_ her soul!--MOORE.

God _grant_ you find one face there You loved when all was
young.--KINGSLEY.

Now _tremble_ dimples on your cheek, Sweet _be_ your lips to
taste and speak.--BEDDOES.

Long _die_ thy happy days before thy death.--SHAKESPEARE.

II. A Contingent Declaration or Question.

220. This really amounts to the conclusion, or principal clause, in a sentence, of which the condition is omitted.

Our chosen specimen of the hero as literary man [if we were to
choose one] _would be_ this Goethe.--CARLYLE.

I _could lie_ down like a tired child,
And _weep_ away the life of care
Which I have borne and yet must bear.--SHELLEY.

Most excellent stranger, as you come to the lakes simply to see
their loveliness, _might_ it not _be_ as well to ask after the
most beautiful road, rather than the shortest?--DE QUINCEY.

Subjunctive in Dependent Clauses.

I. Condition or Supposition.

221. The most common way of representing the action or being as merely thought of, is by putting it into the form of a _supposition_ or _condition_; as,--

Now, if the fire of electricity and that of lightning _be_ the
same, this pasteboard and these scales may represent electrified
clouds.--FRANKLIN.

Here no assertion is made that the two things _are_ the same; but, if the reader merely _conceives_ them for the moment to be the same, the writer can make the statement following. Again,--

If it _be_ Sunday [supposing it to be Sunday], the peasants sit
on the church steps and con their psalm books.--LONGFELLOW.

STUDY OF CONDITIONAL SENTENCES.

222. There are three kinds of conditional sentences:--

[Sidenote: _Real or true._]

(1) Those in which an assumed or admitted fact is placed before the mind in the form of a condition (see Sec. 215, 2); for example,--

If they _were_ unacquainted with the works of philosophers and
poets, they were deeply read in the oracles of God. If their
names _were not found_ in the registers of heralds, they were
recorded in the Book of Life.--MACAULAY.

[Sidenote: _Ideal,--may or may not be true._]

(2) Those in which the condition depends on something uncertain, and _may or may not be regarded true, or be fulfilled_; as,--

If, in our case, the representative system ultimately _fail_,
popular government must be pronounced impossible.--D. WEBSTER.

If this _be_ the glory of Julius, the first great founder of the
Empire, so it is also the glory of Charlemagne, the second
founder.--BRYCE.

If any man _consider_ the present aspects of what is called by
distinction society, he will see the need of these ethics.
--EMERSON.

[Sidenote: _Unreal--cannot be true._]

(3) Suppositions _contrary to fact_, which cannot be true, or conditions that cannot be fulfilled, but are presented only in order to suggest what _might be_ or _might have been_ true; thus,--

If these things _were_ true, society could not hold together.
--LOWELL.

_Did not_ my writings _produce_ me some solid pudding, the great
deficiency of praise would have quite discouraged me.--FRANKLIN.

_Had_ he for once _cast_ all such feelings aside, and _striven_
energetically to save Ney, it _would have cast_ such an enhancing
light over all his glories, that we cannot but regret its
absence.--BAYNE.

NOTE.--Conditional sentences are usually introduced by _if_,
_though_, _except_, _unless_, etc.; but when the verb precedes
the subject, the conjunction is often omitted: for example,
"_Were I bidden_ to say how the highest genius could be most
advantageously employed," etc.

Exercise.

In the following conditional clauses, tell whether each verb is indicative or subjunctive, and what kind of condition:--

1. The voice, if he speak to you, is of similar physiognomy,
clear, melodious, and sonorous.--CARLYLE.

2. Were you so distinguished from your neighbors, would you, do
you think, be any the happier?--THACKERAY.

3. Epaminondas, if he was the man I take him for, would have sat
still with joy and peace, if his lot had been mine.--EMERSON.

4. If a damsel had the least smattering of literature, she was
regarded as a prodigy.--MACAULAY.

5. I told him, although it were the custom of our learned in
Europe to steal inventions from each other,... yet I would take
such caution that he should have the honor entire.--SWIFT.

6. If he had reason to dislike him, he had better not have
written, since he [Byron] was dead.--N.P. WILLIS.

7. If it were prostrated to the ground by a profane hand, what
native of the city would not mourn over its fall?--GAYARRE.

8. But in no case could it be justified, except it be for a
failure of the association or union to effect the object for
which it was created.--CALHOUN.

II. Subjunctive of Purpose.

223. The subjunctive, especially _be_, _may_, _might_, and _should_, is used to express purpose, the clause being introduced by _that_ or _lest_; as,--

It was necessary, he supposed, to drink strong beer, that he
_might be_ strong to labor.--FRANKLIN.

I have been the more particular...that you _may compare_ such
unlikely beginnings with the figure I have since made
there.--_Id._

He [Roderick] with sudden impulse that way rode, To tell of what
had passed, lest in the strife They _should engage_ with Julian's
men.--SOUTHEY.

III. Subjunctive of Result.

224. The subjunctive may represent the result toward which an action tends:--

So many thoughts move to and fro,
That vain it _were_ her eyes to close.
--COLERIDGE.

So live, that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan...
Thou _go_ not, like the quarry-slave at night.
--BRYANT.

IV. In Temporal Clauses.

225. The English subjunctive, like the Latin, is sometimes used in a clause to express the time when an action is to take place.

Let it rise, till it _meet_ the sun in his coming.--D. WEBSTER.

Rise up, before it _be_ too late!--HAWTHORNE.

But it will not be long
Ere this _be thrown_ aside.
--WORDSWORTH.

V. In Indirect Questions.

226. The subjunctive is often found in indirect questions, the answer being regarded as doubtful.

Ask the great man if there _be_ none greater.--EMERSON

What the best arrangement _were_, none of us could say.--CARLYLE.

Whether it _were_ morning or whether it _were_ afternoon, in her
confusion she had not distinctly known.--DE QUINCEY.

VI. Expressing a Wish.

227. After a verb of wishing, the subjunctive is regularly used in the dependent clause.

The transmigiation of souls is no fable. I would it _were_!
--EMERSON.

Bright star! Would I _were_ steadfast as thou art!--KEATS.

I've wished that little isle _had_ wings,
And we, within its fairy bowers,
_Were wafted_ off to seas unknown.
--MOORE.

VII. In a Noun Clause.

[Sidenote: _Subject._]

228. The noun clause, in its various uses as subject, object, in apposition, etc., often contains a subjunctive.

The essence of originality is not that it _be_ new.--CARLYLE

[Sidenote: _Apposition or logical subject._]

To appreciate the wild and sharp flavors of those October fruits,
it is necessary that you _be breathing_ the sharp October or
November air.--THOREAU.

[Sidenote: _Complement._]

The first merit, that which admits neither substitute nor
equivalent, is, that everything _be_ in its place.--COLERIDGE.

[Sidenote: _Object._]

As sure as Heaven shall rescue me, I have no thought what men
they _be_.--COLERIDGE.

Some might lament that I _were_ cold.--SHELLEY.

[Sidenote: _After verbs of commanding._]

This subjunctive is very frequent after verbs of _commanding_.

See that there _be_ no traitors in your camp.--TENNYSON.

Come, tell me all that thou hast seen,
And look thou _tell_ me true.
--SCOTT.

See that thy scepter _be_ heavy on his head.--DE QUINCEY.

VIII. Concessive Clauses.

229. The concession may be expressed--

(1) In the nature of the verb; for example,--

_Be_ the matter how it may, Gabriel Grub was afflicted with
rheumatism to the end of his days.--DICKENS.

_Be_ the appeal _made_ to the understanding or the heart, the
sentence is the same--that rejects it.--BROUGHAM

(2) By an indefinite relative word, which may be

(_a_) _Pronoun._

Whatever _betide_, we'll turn aside,
And see the Braes of Yarrow.
--WORDSWORTH.

(_b_) _Adjective._

That hunger of applause, of cash, or whatsoever victual it _may
be_, is the ultimate fact of man's life.--CARLYLE.

(_c_) _Adverb._

Wherever he _dream_ under mountain or stream,
The spirit he loves remains.
--SHELLEY.

Prevalence of the Subjunctive Mood.

230. As shown by the wide range of literature from which these examples are selected, the subjunctive is very much used in literary English, especially by those who are artistic and exact in the expression of their thought.

At the present day, however, the subjunctive is becoming less and less used. Very many of the sentences illustrating the use of the subjunctive mood could be replaced by numerous others using the indicative to express the same thoughts.

The three uses of the subjunctive now most frequent are, to express a wish, a concession, and condition contrary to fact.

In spoken English, the subjunctive _were_ is much used in a wish or a condition contrary to fact, but hardly any other subjunctive forms are.

It must be remembered, though, that many of the verbs in the subjunctive have the same form as the indicative. Especially is this true of unreal conditions in past time; for example,--

Were we of open sense as the Greeks were, we _had found_ [should
have found] a poem here.--CARLYLE.

IMPERATIVE MOOD.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

231. The imperative mood is the form of the verb used in direct commands, entreaties, or requests.

[Sidenote: _Usually second person._]

232. The imperative is naturally used mostly with the second person, since commands are directed to a person addressed.

(1) _Command._

_Call up_ the shades of Demosthenes and Cicero to vouch for your
words; _point_ to their immortal works.--J.Q. ADAMS.

_Honor_ all men; _love_ all men; _fear_ none.--CHANNING.

(2) _Entreaty._

Oh, from these sterner aspects of thy face
_Spare_ me and mine, nor _let_ us need the wrath
Of the mad unchained elements.
--BRYANT.

(3) _Request._

"_Hush_! mother," whispered Kit. "_Come_ along with me."--DICKENS

_Tell_ me, how was it you thought of coming here?--_Id._

[Sidenote: _Sometimes with_ first person _in the plural_.]

But the imperative may be used with the plural of the first person. Since the first person plural person is not really I + I, but I + you, or I + they, etc., we may use the imperative with _we_ in a command, request, etc., to _you_ implied in it. This is scarcely ever found outside of poetry.

_Part we_ in friendship from your land,
And, noble earl, receive my hand.
--SCOTT.

Then _seek we_ not their camp--for there
The silence dwells of my despair.
--CAMPBELL.

_Break we_ our watch up.--SHAKESPEARE.

Usually this is expressed by _let_ with the objective: "_Let_ us go." And the same with the third person: "_Let_ him be accursed."

Exercises on the Moods.

(_a_) Tell the mood of each verb in these sentences, and what special use it is of that mood:--

1. Wherever the standard of freedom and independence has been or
shall be unfurled, there will her heart and her prayers be.

2. Mark thou this difference, child of earth!
While each performs his part,
Not all the lip can speak is worth
The silence of the heart.

3. Oh, that I might be admitted to thy presence! that mine were
the supreme delight of knowing thy will!

4. 'Twere worth ten years of peaceful life,
One glance at their array!

5. Whatever inconvenience ensue, nothing is to be preferred
before justice.

6. The vigorous sun would catch it up at eve
And use it for an anvil till he had filled
The shelves of heaven with burning thunderbolts.

7. Meet is it changes should control
Our being, lest we rust in ease.

8. Quoth she, "The Devil take the goose,
And God forget the stranger!"

9. Think not that I speak for your sakes.

10. "Now tread we a measure!" said young Lochinvar.

11. Were that a just return? Were that Roman magnanimity?

12. Well; how he may do his work, whether he do it right or
wrong, or do it at all, is a point which no man in the world has
taken the pains to think of.

13. He is, let him live where else he like, in what pomps and
prosperities he like, no literary man.

14. Could we one day complete the immense figure which these
flagrant points compose!

15. "Oh, then, my dear madam," cried he, "tell me where I may
find my poor, ruined, but repentant child."

16. That sheaf of darts, will it not fall unbound,
Except, disrobed of thy vain earthly vaunt,
Thou bring it to be blessed where saints and angels haunt?

17. Forget thyself to marble, till
With a sad leaden downward cast
Thou fix them on the earth as fast.

18. He, as though an instrument,
Blew mimic hootings to the silent owls,
That they might answer him.

19. From the moss violets and jonquils peep,
And dart their arrowy odor through the brain,
Till you might faint with that delicious pain.

20. That a man parade his doubt, and get to imagine that debating
and logic is the triumph and true work of what intellect he has;
alas! this is as if you should overturn the tree.

21. The fat earth feed thy branchy root
That under deeply strikes!
The northern morning o'er thee shoot,
High up in silver spikes!

22. Though abyss open under abyss, and opinion displace opinion,
all are at last contained in the Eternal cause.

23. God send Rome one such other sight!

24. "Mr. Marshall," continued Old Morgan, "see that no one
mentions the United States to the prisoner."

25. If there is only one woman in the nation who claims the right
to vote, she ought to have it.

26. Though he were dumb, it would speak.

27. Meantime, whatever she did,--whether it were in display of
her own matchless talents, or whether it were as one member of a
general party,--nothing could exceed the amiable, kind, and
unassuming deportment of Mrs. Siddons.

28. It makes a great difference to the force of any sentence
whether there be a man behind it or no.

(_b_) Find sentences with five verbs in the indicative mood, five in the subjunctive, five in the imperative.

TENSE.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

233. _Tense_ means _time_. The tense of a verb is the form or use indicating the time of an action or being.

[Sidenote: _Tenses in English._]

Old English had only two tenses,--the present tense, which represented present and future time; and the past tense. We still use the present for the future in such expressions as, "I _go_ away to-morrow;" "If he _comes_, tell him to wait."

But English of the present day not only has a tense for each of the natural time divisions,--present, past, and future,--but has other tenses to correspond with those of highly inflected languages, such as Latin and Greek.

The distinct inflections are found only in the present and past tenses, however: the others are compounds of verbal forms with various helping verbs, called auxiliaries; such as _be_, _have_, _shall_, _will_.

[Sidenote: _The tenses in detail._]

234. Action or being may be represented as occurring in present, past, or future time, by means of the present, the past, and the future tense. It may also be represented as _finished_ in present or past or future time by means of the present perfect, past perfect, and future perfect tenses.

Not only is this so: there are what are called definite forms of these tenses, showing more exactly the time of the action or being. These make the English speech even more exact than other languages, as will be shown later on, in the conjugations.

PERSON AND NUMBER.

235. The English verb has never had full inflections for number and person, as the classical languages have.

When the older pronoun _thou_ was in use, there was a form of the verb to correspond to it, or agree with it, as, "Thou walk_est_," present; "Thou walked_st_," past; also, in the third person singular, a form ending in -_eth_, as, "It is not in man that walk_eth_, to direct his steps."

But in ordinary English of the present day there is practically only one ending for person and number. This is the third person, singular number; as, "He walk_s_;" and this only in the present tense indicative. This is important in questions of agreement when we come to syntax.

CONJUGATION.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

236. Conjugation is the regular arrangement of the forms of the verb in the various voices, moods, tenses, persons, and numbers.

In classical languages, conjugation means _joining together_ the numerous endings to the stem of the verb; but in English, inflections are so few that conjugation means merely the exhibition of the forms and the different verb phrases that express the relations of voice, mood, tense, etc.

[Sidenote: _Few forms._]

237. Verbs in modern English have only four or five forms; for example, _walk_ has _walk_, _walks_, _walked_, _walking_, sometimes adding the old forms _walkest_, _walkedst_, _walketh_. Such verbs as _choose_ have five,--_choose_, _chooses_, _chose_, _choosing_, _chosen_ (old, _choosest_, _chooseth_, _chosest_).

The verb _be_ has more forms, since it is composed of several different roots,--_am_, _are_, _is_, _were_, _been_, etc.

238. INFLECTIONS OF THE VERB _BE_.

Indicative Mood.

Subjunctive Mood.

Imperative Mood.

PRESENT TENSE, _Singular and Plural_, Be.

[Sidenote: _Remarks on the verb_ be.]

239. This conjugation is pieced out with three different roots: (1) _am_, _is_; (2) _was_, _were_; (3) _be_.

Instead of the plural _are_, Old English had _beoth_ and _sind_ or _sindon_, same as the German _sind_. _Are_ is supposed to have come from the Norse language.

The old indicative third person plural _be_ is sometimes found in literature, though it is usually a dialect form; for example,--

Where _be_ the sentries who used to salute as the Royal chariots
drove in and out?--THACKERAY

Where _be_ the gloomy shades, and desolate mountains?--WHITTIER

[Sidenote: _Uses of_ be.]

240. The forms of the verb _be_ have several uses:--

(1) _As principal verbs._

The light that never _was_ on sea and land.--WORDSWORTH.

(2) _As auxiliary verbs_, in four ways,--

(_a_) With verbal forms in _-ing_ (imperfect participle) to form the definite tenses.

Broadswords _are maddening_ in the rear,--Each broadsword bright
_was brandishing_ like beam of light.--SCOTT.

(_b_) With the past participle in _-ed_, _-en_, etc., to form the passive voice.

By solemn vision and bright silver dream,
His infancy _was nurtured_.
--SHELLEY.

(_c_) With past participle of intransitive verbs, being equivalent to the present perfect and past perfect tenses active; as,

When we _are gone_
From every object dear to mortal sight.
--WORDSWORTH

We drank tea, which _was_ now _become_ an occasional
banquet.--GOLDSMITH.

(_d_) With the infinitive, to express intention, obligation, condition, etc.; thus,

It _was to have been called_ the Order of Minerva.--THACKERAY.

Ingenuity and cleverness _are to be rewarded_ by State
prizes.--_Id._

If I _were to explain_ the motion of a body falling to the
ground.--BURKE

241. INFLECTIONS OF THE VERB _CHOOSE_.

Indicative Mood.

PRESENT TENSE.

_Singular._ _Plural._

1. I choose We choose
2. You choose You choose
3. [He] chooses [They] choose

PAST TENSE.

_Singular._ _Plural._

1. I chose We chose
2. You chose You chose
3. [He] chose [They] chose

Subjunctive Mood.

PRESENT TENSE.

_Singular._ _Plural._

1. I choose We choose
2. You choose You choose
3. [He] choose [They] choose

PAST TENSE.

_Singular._ _Plural._

1. I chose We chose
2. You chose You chose
3. [He] chose [They] chose

Imperative Mood.

PRESENT TENSE, _Singular and Plural_, Choose.

FULL CONJUGATION OF THE VERB _CHOOSE_.

[Sidenote: _Machinery of a verb in the voices, tenses, etc._]

242. In addition to the above _inflected_ forms, there are many periphrastic or _compound_ forms, made up of auxiliaries with the infinitives and participles. Some of these have been indicated in Sec. 240, (2).

The ordinary tenses yet to be spoken of are made up as follows:--

(1) _Future tense_, by using _shall_ and _will_ with the simple or root form of the verb; as, "I _shall be_," "He _will choose._"

(2) _Present perfect_, _past perfect_, _future perfect_, tenses, by placing _have_, _had_, and _shall_ (or _will_) _have_ before the past participle of any verb; as, "I _have gone_" (present perfect), "I _had gone_" (past perfect), "I _shall have gone_" (future perfect).

(3) The _definite form_ of each tense, by using auxiliaries with the imperfect participle active; as, "I _am running_," "They _had been running_."

(4) The _passive forms_, by using the forms of the verb _be_ before the past participle of verbs; as, "I _was chosen_," "You _are chosen_."

243. The following scheme will show how rich our language is in verb phrases to express every variety of meaning. Only the third person, singular number, of each tense, will be given.

ACTIVE VOICE.

Indicative Mood.

_Present._ He chooses.
_Present definite._ He is choosing.
_Past._ He chose.
_Past definite._ He was choosing.
_Future._ He will choose.
_Future definite._ He will be choosing.
_Present perfect._ He has chosen.
_Present perfect definite._ He has been choosing.
_Past perfect._ He had chosen.
_Past perfect definite._ He had been choosing.
_Future perfect._ He will have chosen.
_Future perfect definite._ He will have been choosing.

Subjunctive Mood.

_Present._ [If, though, he choose.
_Present definite._ lest, etc.] he be choosing.
_Past._ " he chose (or were to choose).
_Past definite._ " he were choosing
(or were to be choosing).
_Present perfect._ " he have chosen.
_Present perfect definite._ " he have been choosing.
_Past perfect._ " Same as indicative.
_Past perfect definite._ " " "

Imperative Mood.

_Present._ (2d per.) Choose.
_Present definite._ " Be choosing.

NOTE.--Since participles and infinitives are not really verbs, but verbals, they will be discussed later (Sec. 262).

PASSIVE VOICE.

Indicative Mood.

_Present._ He is chosen.
_Present definite._ He is being chosen.
_Past._ He was chosen.
_Past definite._ He was being chosen.
_Future._ He will be chosen.
_Future definite._ None.
_Present perfect._ He has been chosen.
_Present perfect definite._ None.
_Past perfect._ He had been chosen.
_Past perfect definite._ None.
_Future perfect._ He will have been chosen.
_Future perfect definite._ None.

Subjunctive Mood.

_Present._. [If, though, he be chosen.
_Present definite._ lest, etc.] None.
_Past._ " he were chosen
(or were to be chosen).
_Past definite._ " he were being chosen.
_Present perfect._ " he have been chosen.
_Present perfect definite._ " None.
_Past Perfect._ " he had been chosen.
_Past perfect definite._ " None.

Imperative Mood.

_Present tense._ (2d per.) Be chosen.

Also, in _affirmative sentences_, the indicative present and past tenses have emphatic forms made up of _do_ and _did_ with the infinitive or simple form; as, "He _does strike_," "He _did strike_."

[_Note to Teacher_.--This table is not to be learned now; if learned at all, it should be as practice work on strong and weak verb forms. Exercises should be given, however, to bring up sentences containing such of these conjugation forms as the pupil will find readily in literature.]

VERBS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO FORM.

[Sidenote: _Kinds._]

244. According to form, verbs are strong or weak.

[Sidenote: _Definition._]

A strong verb forms its past tense by changing the vowel of the present tense form, but adds no ending; as, _run_, _ran_; _drive_, _drove_.

A weak verb always adds an ending to the present to form the past tense, and _may_ or _may not_ change the vowel: as, _beg_, _begged_; _lay_, _laid_; _sleep_, _slept_; _catch_, _caught_.

245. TABLE OF STRONG VERBS.

NOTE. Some of these also have weak forms, which are in parentheses

_Present Tense._ _Past Tense._ _Past Participle._

abide abode abode
arise arose arisen
awake awoke (awaked) awoke (awaked)
bear bore {borne (active)
{born (passive)
begin began begun
behold beheld beheld
bid bade, bid bidden, bid
bind bound {bound,
{[_adj._ bounden]
bite bit bitten, bit
blow blew blown
break broke broken
chide chid chidden, chid
choose chose chosen
cleave clove, clave (cleft) cloven (cleft)
climb [clomb] climbed climbed
cling clung clung
come came come
crow crew (crowed) (crowed)
dig dug dug
do did done
draw drew drawn
drink drank {drunk, drank
{[_adj._ drunken]
drive drove driven
eat ate, eat eaten, eat
fall fell fallen
fight fought fought
find found found
fling flung flung
fly flew flown
forbear forbore forborne
forget forgot forgotten
forsake forsook forsaken
freeze froze frozen
get got got [gotten]
give gave given
go went gone
grind ground ground
grow grew grown
hang hung (hanged) hung (hanged)
hold held held
know knew known
lie lay lain
ride rode ridden
ring rang rung
run ran run
see saw seen
shake shook shaken
shear shore (sheared) shorn (sheared)
shine shone shone
shoot shot shot
shrink shrank or shrunk shrunk
shrive shrove shriven
sing sang or sung sung
sink sank or sunk sunk _[adj._ sunken]
sit sat [sate] sat
slay slew slain
slide slid slidden, slid
sling slung slung
slink slunk slunk
smite smote smitten
speak spoke spoken
spin spun spun
spring sprang, sprung sprung
stand stood stood
stave stove (staved) (staved)
steal stole stolen
stick stuck stuck
sting stung stung
stink stunk, stank stunk
stride strode stridden
strike struck struck, stricken
string strung strung
strive strove striven
swear swore sworn
swim swam or swum swum
swing swung swung
take took taken
tear tore torn
thrive throve (thrived) thriven (thrived)
throw threw thrown
tread trod trodden, trod
wear wore worn
weave wove woven
win won won
wind wound wound
wring wrung wrung
write wrote written

Remarks on Certain Verb Forms.

246. Several of the perfect participles are seldom used except as adjectives: as, "his _bounden_ duty," "the _cloven_ hoof," "a _drunken_ wretch," "a _sunken_ snag." _Stricken_ is used mostly of diseases; as, "_stricken_ with paralysis."

The verb bear (to bring forth) is peculiar in having one participle (_borne_) for the active, and another (_born_) for the passive. When it means _to carry_ or to _endure_, _borne_ is also a passive.

The form clomb is not used in prose, but is much used in vulgar English, and sometimes occurs in poetry; as,--

Thou hast _clomb_ aloft.--WORDSWORTH

Or pine grove whither woodman never _clomb_.--COLERIDGE

The forms of cleave are really a mixture of two verbs,--one meaning _to adhere_ or _cling_; the other, _to split_. The former used to be _cleave_, _cleaved_, _cleaved_; and the latter, _cleave_, _clave_ or _clove_, _cloven_. But the latter took on the weak form _cleft_ in the past tense and past participle,--as (from Shakespeare), "O Hamlet! thou hast _cleft_ my heart in twain,"--while _cleave_ (to cling) sometimes has _clove_, as (from Holmes), "The old Latin tutor _clove_ to Virgilius Maro." In this confusion of usage, only one set remains certain,--_cleave_, _cleft_, _cleft_ (to split).

Crew is seldom found in present-day English.

Not a cock _crew_, nor a dog barked.--IRVING.

Our cock, which always _crew_ at eleven, now told us it was time
for repose.--GOLDSMITH.

Historically, drunk is the one correct past participle of the verb _drink_. But _drunk_ is very much used as an adjective, instead of _drunken_ (meaning intoxicated); and, probably to avoid confusion with this, drank is a good deal used as a past participle: thus,--

We had each _drank_ three times at the well.--B. TAYLOR.

This liquor _was_ generally _drank_ by Wood and Billings.
--THACKERAY.

Sometimes in literary English, especially in that of an earlier period, it is found that the verb eat has the past tense and past participle _eat_ (ĕt), instead of _ate_ and _eaten_; as, for example,--

It ate the food it ne'er had _eat_.--COLERIDGE.

How fairy Mab the junkets _eat_.--MILTON.

The island princes overbold
Have _eat_ our substance.--TENNYSON.

This is also very much used in spoken and vulgar English.

The form gotten is little used, _got_ being the preferred form of past participle as well as past tense. One example out of many is,--

We _had_ all _got_ safe on shore.--DE FOE.

Hung and hanged both are used as the past tense and past participle of _hang_; but _hanged_ is the preferred form when we speak of execution by hanging; as,

The butler _was hanged_.--_Bible._

The verb sat is sometimes spelled _sate_; for example,--

Might we have _sate_ and talked where gowans blow.--WORDSWORTH.

He _sate_ him down, and seized a pen.--BYRON.

"But I _sate_ still and finished my plaiting."--KINGSLEY.

Usually shear is a weak verb. _Shorn_ and _shore_ are not commonly used: indeed, _shore_ is rare, even in poetry.

This heard Geraint, and grasping at his sword,
_Shore_ thro' the swarthy neck.--TENNYSON.

_Shorn_ is used sometimes as a participial adjective, as "a _shorn_ lamb," but not much as a participle. We usually say, "The sheep were _sheared_" instead of "The sheep were _shorn_."

Went is borrowed as the past tense of _go_ from the old verb _wend_, which is seldom used except in poetry; for example,--

If, maiden, thou would'st _wend_ with me
To leave both tower and town.--SCOTT.

Exercises.

(_a_) From the table (Sec. 245), make out lists of verbs having the same vowel changes as each of the following:--

1. Fall, fell, fallen.

2. Begin, began, begun.

3. Find, found, found.

4. Give, gave, given.

5. Drive, drove, driven.

6. Throw, threw, thrown.

7. Fling, flung, flung.

8. Break, broke, broken.

9. Shake, shook, shaken.

10. Freeze, froze, frozen.

(_b_) Find sentences using ten past-tense forms of strong verbs.

(_c_) Find sentences using ten past participles of strong verbs.

[_To the Teacher_,--These exercises should be continued for several lessons, for full drill on the forms.]

DEFECTIVE STRONG VERBS.

247. There are several verbs which are lacking in one or more principal parts. They are as follows:--

248. May is used as either indicative or subjunctive, as it has two meanings. It is indicative when it expresses _permission_, or, as it sometimes does, _ability_, like the word _can_: it is subjunctive when it expresses doubt as to the reality of an action, or when it expresses wish, purpose, etc.

[Sidenote: _Indicative Use: Permission. Ability._]

If I _may_ lightly employ the Miltonic figure, "far off his
coming shines."--WINIER.

A stripling arm _might_ sway
A mass no host could raise.--SCOTT.

His superiority none _might_ question.--CHANNING.

[Sidenote: _Subjunctive use._]

In whatever manner the separate parts of a constitution _may_ be
arranged, there is one general principle, etc.--PAINE.

[Sidenote: (_See also Sec. 223._)]

And from her fair and unpolluted flesh
_May_ violets spring!
--SHAKESPEARE.

249. Can is used in the indicative only. The _l_ in _could_ did not belong there originally, but came through analogy with _should_ and _would_. _Could_ may be subjunctive, as in Sec. 220.

250. Must is historically a past-tense form, from the obsolete verb _motan_, which survives in the sentence, "So _mote_ it be." _Must_ is present or past tense, according to the infinitive used.

All _must concede_ to him a sublime power of action.--CHANNING

This, of course, _must have been_ an ocular
deception.--HAWTHORNE.

251. The same remarks apply to ought, which is historically the past tense of the verb _owe_. Like _must_, it is used only in the indicative mood; as,

The just imputations on our own faith _ought_ first _to be
removed_.... Have we valuable territories and important
posts...which _ought_ long since _to have been surrendered_?--A.
HAMILTON.

It will be noticed that all the other defective verbs take the pure infinitive without _to_, while _ought_ always has _to_.

Shall and Will.

252. The principal trouble in the use of _shall_ and _will_ is the disposition, especially in the United States, to use _will_ and _would_, to the neglect of _shall_ and _should_, with pronouns of the first person; as, "I think I _will_ go."

[Sidenote: _Uses of_ shall _and_ should.]

The following distinctions must be observed:--

(1) With the FIRST PERSON, shall and should are used,--

[Sidenote: _Futurity and questions--first person._]

(_a_) In making simple statements or predictions about future time; as,--

The time will come full soon, I _shall_ be gone.--L.C. MOULTON.

(_b_) In questions asking for orders, or implying obligation or authority resting upon the subject; as,--

With respect to novels, what _shall_ I say?--N. WEBSTER.

How _shall_ I describe the luster which at that moment burst upon
my vision?--C. BROCKDEN BROWN.

[Sidenote: _Second and third persons._]

(2) With the SECOND AND THIRD PERSONS, _shall_ and _should_ are used,--

(_a_) To express authority, in the form of command, promise, or confident prediction. The following are examples:--

Never mind, my lad, whilst I live thou _shalt_ never want a
friend to stand by thee.--IRVING.

They _shall_ have venison to eat, and corn to hoe.--COOPER.

The sea _shall_ crush thee; yea, the ponderous wave up the loose
beach _shall_ grind and scoop thy grave.--THAXTER.

She _should_ not walk, he said, through the dust and heat of
the noonday;
Nay, she _should_ ride like a queen, not plod along like a
peasant.--LONGFELLOW.

(_b_) In _indirect quotations_, to express the same idea that the original speaker put forth (i.e., future action); for example,--

He declares that he _shall_ win the purse from you.--BULWER.

She rejects his suit with scorn, but assures him that she _shall_
make great use of her power over him.--MACAULAY.

Fielding came up more and more bland and smiling, with the
conviction that he _should_ win in the end.--A. LARNED.

Those who had too presumptuously concluded that they _should_
pass without combat were something disconcerted.--SCOTT.

(_c_) With _direct questions_ of the second person, when the answer expected would express simple futurity; thus,--

"_Should_ you like to go to school at Canterbury?"--DICKENS.

[Sidenote: _First, second and third persons._]

(3) With ALL THREE PERSONS,--

(_a_) _Should_ is used with the meaning of obligation, and is equivalent to _ought_.

I never was what I _should_ be.--H. JAMES, JR.

Milton! thou _should'st_ be living at this hour.--WORDSWORTH.

He _should_ not flatter himself with the delusion that he can
make or unmake the reputation of other men.--WINTER.

(_b_) _Shall_ and _should_ are both used in _dependent clauses_ of condition, time, purpose, etc.; for example,--

When thy mind
_Shall_ be a mansion for all stately forms.--WORDSWORTH.

Suppose this back-door gossip _should_ be utterly blundering and
untrue, would any one wonder?--THACKERAY.

Jealous lest the sky _should_ have a listener.--BYRON.

If thou _should'st_ ever come by chance or choice to
Modena.--ROGERS.

If I _should_ be where I no more can hear thy voice.--WORDSWORTH.

That accents and looks so winning _should_ disarm me of my
resolution, was to be expected.--C.B. BROWN.

253. Will and would are used as follows:--

[Sidenote: _Authority as to future action--first person._]

(1) With the FIRST PERSON, _will_ and _would_ are used to express determination as to the future, or a promise; as, for example,--

I _will_ go myself now, and _will_ not return until all is
finished.--CABLE.

And promised...that I _would_ do him justice, as the sole
inventor.--SWIFT.

[Sidenote: _Disguising a command._]

(2) With the SECOND PERSON, _will_ is used to express command. This puts the order more mildly, as if it were merely expected action; as,--

Thou _wilt_ take the skiff, Roland, and two of my people,... and
fetch off certain plate and belongings.--SCOTT.

You _will_ proceed to Manassas at as early a moment as
practicable, and mark on the grounds the works, etc.--_War
Records._

[Sidenote: _Mere futurity._]

(3) With both SECOND AND THIRD PERSONS, _will_ and _would_ are used to express simple futurity, action merely expected to occur; for example,--

All this _will_ sound wild and chimerical.--BURKE.

She _would_ tell you that punishment is the reward of the
wicked.--LANDOR.

When I am in town, _you'll_ always have somebody to sit with you.
To be sure, so you _will_.--DICKENS.

(4) With FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD PERSONS, _would_ is used to express a _wish_,--the original meaning of the word _will_; for example,--

[Sidenote: _Subject_ I _omitted: often so._]

_Would_ that a momentary emanation from thy glory would visit
me!--C.B. BROWN.

Thine was a dangerous gift, when thou wast born, The gift of
Beauty. _Would_ thou hadst it not.--ROGERS

It shall be gold if thou _wilt_, but thou shalt answer to me for
the use of it.--SCOTT.

What _wouldst_ thou have a good great man obtain?--COLERIDGE.

(5) With the THIRD PERSON, _will_ and _would_ often denote an action as customary, without regard to future time; as,

They _will_ go to Sunday schools, through storms their brothers
are afraid of.... They _will_ stand behind a table at a fair all
day.--HOLMES

On a slight suspicion, they _would_ cut off the hands of numbers
of the natives, for punishment or intimidation.--BANCROFT.

In this stately chair _would_ he sit, and this magnificent pipe
_would_ he smoke, shaking his right knee with a constant
motion.--IRVING.

Conjugation of _Shall_ and _Will_ as Auxiliaries (with _Choose_).

254. To express simply expected action:--

ACTIVE VOICE. PASSIVE VOICE.

_Singular_. _Singular_.

1. I shall choose. I shall be chosen.
2. You will choose. You will be chosen.
3. [He] will choose. [He] will be chosen.

_Plural_. _Plural_.

1. We shall choose. We shall be chosen.
2. You will choose. You will be chosen.
3. [They] will choose. [They] will be chosen.

To express determination, promise, etc.:--

ACTIVE VOICE. PASSIVE VOICE.

_Singular_. _Singular_.

1. I will choose. I will be chosen.
2. You shall choose. You shall be chosen.
3. [He] shall choose. [He] shall be chosen.

ACTIVE VOICE. PASSIVE VOICE.

_Plural_. _Plural_.

1. We will choose. 1. We will be chosen.
2. You shall choose. 2. You shall be chosen.
3. [They] shall choose. 3. [They] shall be chosen.

Exercises on _Shall_ and _Will_.

(_a_) From Secs. 252 and 253, write out a summary or outline of the various uses of _shall_ and _will_.

(_b_) Examine the following sentences, and justify the use of _shall_ and _will_, or correct them if wrongly used:--

1. Thou art what I would be, yet only seem.

2. We would be greatly mistaken if we thought so.

3. Thou shalt have a suit, and that of the newest cut; the wardrobe keeper shall have orders to supply you.

4. "I shall not run," answered Herbert stubbornly.

Previous Next

Comments

An English GrammarChapter VII: Part I: The Parts of Speech (4)

0%34 min left in chapter