Higher Lessons in English Part 72

Wear, wore, worn.

Weave, wove, woven.

Weep, wept, wept.

Wet, wet, wet.

Will, would, ----.

Win, won, won.

Wind, wound, wound.

Work, wrought, wrought, _worked_, _worked_.

(to)wit, wot, wist, ----.

Wring, wrung, wrung.

Write, wrote, written.

[Footnote 1: _Lighted_ Is preferred to _lit_.]

[Footnote 2: _Quoth_, now nearly obsolete, is used only in the first and the third person of the past tense. _Quoth_ I = _said_ I. Other forms nearly obsolete are sometimes met in literature; as, "_Methinks_ I scent the morning air"; "Woe _worth_ the day." _Methinks_ (A. S. _thincan_, to seem, not _thencan_, to think) = _seems to me_. In the sentence above, _I scent the morning air_ is the subject, _thinks_ is the predicate, and _me_ is a "dative," or a p.r.o.noun used adverbially. Woe _worth_ (A. S.

_weorthan_, to _be_ or _become_) the day = Woe _be_ to the day, or _Let_ woe _be_ to the day, or _May_ woe _be_ to the day.]

NOTE.--Professor Lounsbury says, "Modern English has lost not a single one [irregular, or strong, verb] since the reign of Queen Elizabeth"; and adds, "The present disposition of the language is not only to hold firmly to the strong verbs it already possesses but ... even to extend their number whenever possible." And he instances a few which since 1600 have deserted from the regular conjugation to the irregular.

But it should be said that new English verbs, from whatever source derived, form their past tense and participle in _ed_. So that while the regular verbs are not increasing by desertions from the irregular, the regular verbs are slowly gaining in number.

LESSON 134.

FORMS OF THE VERB--CONTINUED.

CONJUGATION [Footnote: We give the conjugation of the verb in the simplest form consistent with what is now demanded of a text-book. Much of this scheme might well be omitted.

Those who wish to reject the Potential Mode, and who prefer a more elaborate and technical cla.s.sification of the mode and tense forms, are referred to pages 373, 374. ]--SIMPLEST FORM.

REMARK.--English verbs have few inflections compared with those of other languages. Some irregular verbs have seven forms--+see+, +saw+, +seeing+, +seen+, +sees+, +seest+, +sawest+; regular verbs have six--+walk+, +walked+, +walking+, +walks+, +walkest+, +walkedst+. As a subst.i.tute for other inflections we prefix auxiliary verbs, and make what are called _compound_, or _periphrastic_, forms.

+Direction+.--_Fill out the following forms, using the princ.i.p.al parts of the verb walk--present +walk+; past +walked+; past participle +walked+:_--

INDICATIVE MODE.

PRESENT TENSE.

Singular. Plural.

1. (I) /Pres./, 1. (We) /Pres./, 2. (You) /Pres./, 2. (You) /Pres./, (Thou) /Pres./+est,[1], 3. (He) /Pres./+s;[1] 3. (They) /Pres./.

PAST TENSE.

1. (I) /Past/, 1. (We) /Past/, 2. (You) /Past/, 2. (You) /Past/, (Thou) /Past/+st+, 3. (He) /Past/; 3. (They) /Past/.

FUTURE TENSE.

1. (I) shall /Pres./, 1. (We) shall /Pres./, 2. (You) will /Pres./, 2. (You) will /Pres./, (Thou) wil-+t+ /Pres./, 3. (He) will /Pres./; 3. (They) will /Pres./.

PRESENT PERFECT TENSE.

1. (I) have /Past Par./, 1. (We) have /Past Par./, 2. (You) have /Past Par./, 2. (You) have /Past Par./, (Thou) ha-+st+ /Past Par./, 3. (He) ha-+s+ /Past Par./; 3. (They) have /Past Par./.

PAST PERFECT TENSE.

1. (I) had /Past Par./, 1. (We) had /Past Par./ 2. (You) had /Past Par./, 2. (You) had /Past Par./ (Thou) had-+st+ /Past Par./, 3. (He) had /Past Par./; 3. (They) had /Past Par./

FUTURE PERFECT TENSE.

1. (I) shall have /Past Par./, 1. (We) shall have /Past Par./, 2. (You) will have /Past Par./, 2. (You) will have /Past Par./, (Thou) wil-+t+ have /Past Par./,

3. (He)...will have..../Past Par./; 3. (They) will have /Past Par./.

[Footnote 1: In the indicative present, second, singular, old style, _st_ is sometimes added in stead of _est_; and in the third person, common style, _es_ is added when _s_ will not unite. In the third person, old style, _eth_ is added.]

POTENTIAL MODE.[2]

PRESENT TENSE.

Singular. Plural.

1. (I) may /Pres./, 1. (We) may /Pres./, 2. (You) may /Pres./, 2. (You) may /Pres./, (Thou) may-+st+ /Pres./, 3. (He) may /Pres./; 3. (They) may /Pres./.

PAST TENSE.

1. (I) might /Pres./, 1. (We) might /Pres./, 2. (You) might /Pres./, 2. (You) might /Pres./, (Thou) might-+st+ /Pres./, 3. (He) might /Pres./; 3. (They) might /Pres./.

PRESENT PERFECT TENSE.

1. (I) may have /Past Par./, 1. (We) may have /Past Par./, 2. (You) may have /Past Par./, 2. (You) may have /Past Par./, (Thou) may-+st+ have /Past Par./, 3. (He) may have /Past Par./. 3. (They) may have /Past Par./.

PAST PERFECT TENSE.

1. (I) might have /Past Par./, 1. (We) might have /Past Par./, 2. (You) might have /Past Par./, 2. (You) might have /Past Par./, (Thou) might-+st+ have /Past Par./, 3. (He) might have /Past Par./. 3. (They) might have /Past Par./.

Singular.

[Footnote 2: Those who do not wish to recognize a Potential Mode, but prefer the unsatisfactory task of determining when _may, can, must, might, could, would, and should_ are independent verbs in the indicative, and when auxiliaries in the subjunctive, are referred to pages 370-374.]

SUBJUNCTIVE MODE.[3]

PRESENT TENSE.

Singular.

2. (If thou) /Pres./ 3. (If he) /Pres./

[Footnote 3: The subjunctive as a form of the verb is fading out of the language. The only distinctive forms remaining (except for the verb _be_) are the second and the third person singular of the present, and even these ate giving way to the indicative. Such forms as If he _have loved_, etc.