Weld's new English grammar. Weld's English grammar

Front matter

o

5 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.!

[SMITHSONIAN DEPOSIT.]

Preface

As the plates from which the previous editions of this Work were printed were unfit for further use, and on that account it became necessary to stereotype a new set, the opportunity thus presented for a revision has been improved. In rewriting the book, full advantage has been taken of the unfriendly as well as the friendly strictures on former editions. From the past success of the Work, the Author has been much encouraged in this new labor, and has earnestly endeavored to make it more useful, and more acceptable to the hundreds of excellent teachers who have shown it continued favor and indulgence. He hopes his efforts will not be found to have been in vain.

No material alteration is made from the original plan ; but the execution of it, in almost every part, is considerably modified. Much is added to the analytical, and also to the grammatical part of the Work ; and, although its size is not enlarged, yet, by a more economical management of the type, it actually contains about one third more than any former edition.

The plan pursued necessarily requires some repetition; but this is avoided as much as is consistent with practical convenience. It is the design of the Part following Orthography, to explain and combine the elements of a simple sentence ; but in doing this, the principles of Syntax are

4 PREFACE.

developed at every step. But these could not be fully illustrated in this Part, without diverting the mind of the learner from the chief end to be attained. It therefore seemed necessary to state principles as they were developed, and afterwards to illustrate them more fully in the Part devoted exclusively to Syntax. For a similar reason a separate- Part was appropriated to Etymology. In this are contained tables, inflections and details, which must necessarily have a place in a Grammar for the purpose of reference. Had these been introduced in connection with the analytical process, they would have separated too widely from one another the explanations of the elementary parts of the sentence. It is confidently believed that in practice the arrangement adopted will be found convenient, and that the occasional repetitions and recapitulations will not be considered by the experienced teacher as a defect in the work.

While preparing the present edition, the author has had access to most of the principal works on Grammar, such as those of Harris, Lowth, Ward, Murray, Crombie, De Sacy, Cramp, and Webster; and also to the articles on Grammar in the Edinburgh, Britannica, and Metropolitan Encyclopaedias. In the analytical part much assistance has been derived from the Greek Grammars of Buttman and Kuner, from the Latin Grammars of Zumpt, and Andrews and Stoddard, and from the work of De Sacy on General Grammar.

The general plan and peculiar features of the Work, which distinguish it from others on the same subject, may be inferred from the " Synopsis of Grammatical Relations," found on pages 230 and 231.

Boston, July, 1849*

FAMILIAR INSTRUCTION FOR YOUNG BEGINNERS.

The following introductory pages are prefixed to the work, mainly for the purpose of suggesting to the teacher a familiar and intelligible method of explaining to the learner the formation of words and sentences ; the terms employed in Grammar ; and the classification of words into what is called Parts of Speech.

Each lesson presents a subject for a familiar lecture, with a few illustrations which can be varied or extended at the discretion of the teacher.

LESSON I. (Letters.)

Note. — Let the class stand at the Blackboard, or be furnished with slates while practising these lessons ; or the teacher can do the writing on the Board for the class.

Write the marks or letters a, e, i, o, u. Sound or utter each separately.*

Write the letters b, c, d,f, g,j, 7c, I, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v. Endeavor to sound each by itself, not using a, e, or u before or after them. Try to sound b and d in the word bird, c in the word cat, f in faith, g in go, k in kind, s in sail, j in judge, t in toil.

Sound a in the words bate, bat, bar, ball.

Sound e in mete, met.

Sound i in pine, pin.

Sound o in note, not, move.

Sound u in tube, tub, full.

What is the difference between the letters a, e, i, o, u, and the letters b, c, d ,f 9i h &c- ?

Ans. The letters a, e, i, o, u, can be sounded easily alone, and are called vocals or vowels. The other letters are not easily sounded without the aid of vowels, and are called consonants.

♦Let. the claos practise simultaneously, on the different sound of these letters, with & fall and distinct utterance. 1*

6 FAMILIAR LESSOHS*

LESSON H. (Words.)

Put the letters b, d, r, i, together in such a way that they will call to mind something which you have seen. In like manner place the letters h, s, r, e, o ; d, g, o ; iv, i, d, n ; r, n, i, a.

When letters are put together so as to mean something, they form words. Before letters were invented, certain pictures or signs were used in writing, instead of words.

Remark. — The whole number of words, consisting of about 40,000, is divided into eight different classes or sorts.

LESSON III. (Classification of words.) Nouns, Pronouns.

One class of words consists of the names of things which we can see or think of.

Write or mention the names of the objects which you can see or think of.

Does every object have a name ? Ans. A large number of objects of the same kind has a common name. For example ; there is a great number of horses, and but one common name for all, viz. : horse.

Do any objects have a particular name which is applicable to no other " object ? Ans. Some objects are so important, that we wish to speak of them separately, and for convenience, we give them a particular name ; as, Washington, Boston, Amazon, James, Charles, &c.

Will you give particular names to some mountains ? cities ? rivers ? towns ? persons ?

Do trees, birds, fish, and stones, have particular names ? Why not ?

Words which denote the names of objects and things are called Nouns.

Write the words /, thou, he, she, it, we, you, they, him, he, them, who, which.

Are these words names of things ? Ans. They are not names or nouns, but they stand in place of nouns, and are called pronouns.

Example. — I heard from my brother yesterday ; he was well. The word he is used to avoid repeating brother.

LESSON IY. (Classification of words.) Yerbs.

Write the words sings, runs, neighs.

Do these words denote the names of objects ? What do they denote ? Ans. They denote what something does. What sings ? What runs ? What

neighs ?

Write other words which will denote what a man, a horse, a Hon, or a dog, does.

How does the word bird differ from the word sings ? Ans. The first is the name of a certain animal, the last denotes what the bird does.

What is the difference between the words fox and runs f horse and neighs f dog and barks ? sun and shines t wind and blows f

Words which denote what any thing does, has done, or will do, are called Verbs.*

Remark. — The two classes of words explained, viz. : the' noun and the verb , comprise a large part of all the words in the English language.

LESSON V. (Classification of words.) Adjectives.

Write the words good, great, wise, prudent.

Are these words nonns ? Why not ? Write each before the noun man. What do these words denote, when used before man ? Ans. They denote what hind' of a man, or the quality of a man.

Write words which will show what kind of a house you livfi in — what kind of a book you hold in your hand — what kind of a day it is.

These words which denote what kind or quality, are called Adjectives.

Note — The -words an or a, and the are generally called articles, but as they resemble in their office the words one, this, that, &c, they are sometimes classed with adjectives which limit or restrict the meaning of nouns, and are called Definitive adjectives.

What is the difference between the words horse and gray 1 Ans. The word horse is the name of an animal, the word gray denotes the kind, or quality of something. What is the difference between the words light and pleasant f boy and good f tree and high ? house and large ?

Apply three adjectives to man; three to child; three to day ; three to night; four to horse; five to tree; three to sun.

LESSON VI. (Classification of words.) Adverbs.

Write the words pleasantly, sweetly, cheerfully.

Can these words be joined to nouns ? In the expression, the sun shines, to which word can pleasantly be joined to make sense ? What kind of a word is shines ? " The bird sings sweetly." Which word shows how the bird sings ? " The night was very dark.'* Which word shows how dark the night was? What kind of a word is dark? "He came yesterday." Which word denotes the time ? With which word is yesterday connected ?

* This is not designed as a complete definition of the verb. Oral explanation from the teacher, will be necessary to make the ofiice of the verb intelligible to the learner.

Words which denote manner, time, quantity, &c, are called Adverbs.

There are three other classes of words, termed prepositions, see § 7 ; conjunctions, see § 12; interjections, see § 14; these comprise but few words compared with the classes which have been explained above.

SUMMAEY.

What is the number of words estimated to be in the English language ?

Into what sorts or classes are these words divided, as explained in preceding lessons ?

Name the Parts of Speech. Ans. The noun, the pronoun, THE ADJECTIVE, THE VERB, THE ADVERB, THE PREPO- SITION, THE CONJUNCTION, and THE INTERJECTION.

LESSON VK (The sentence.)

Write on the board or slate, in separate columns, the following nouns and verbs.

Nouns. — Wind, snow, stars. Verbs. — Shine, flies, flows.

Place the nouns and the verbs together in such a way that they will make sense. How many things can be said with the six words above ? Words put together in such a manner as to express an idea, form a sentence ; as, The wind blows ; the stars shine. Write sentences, using the following words :

Water, ice, trees, sun, horse, grow, melts, freezes, shines, dogs,

children, bark, play, walk, men, boys, ride, rolls, ball.

What parts of speech have you used in each sentence ?

Note. — Every sentence contains at least one verb, and one noun, or something Standing for a noun.

Write six sentences, nsing such nouns and verbs as you can recollect.

LESSON VEX (Modifications.)

Join an adjective to each of the nouns in the following sentences to denote some quality ; as, The oak falls ; join an adjective to the noun oak t find the sentence will read, " The sturdy oak falls."

The — youth learns. The — children obey.

The — sun shines. The — child weeps.

The — bird sings. The — water flows.

Join an advert to each of the verbs in the sentences above ; as, The youth learns readily; readily is an adverb joined to the verb learns. Point out the adjectives, nmins, verbs, and adverbs, in the following sentences.

Pine trees grow rapidly. The gentle wind blows softly. The little bird sings sweetly. The angry waves dash violently. The joyful tidings came to day. A wise man acts prudently.

LESSON IX. (Formation of sentences?)

Write in separate columns the following adjectives, nouns, verbs, and adverbs.

Adjectives. — Pleasant, kind, proud, dark.

Nouns. — Cloud, sun, parents, youth.

Verbs. — Shines, hangs, conducts, provide.

Place four of the words above together, so as to form a sentence ; as, The dark cloud hangs frowningly.

LESSON X. (Object)

Write on the board or slate, " The wind shakes the leaves."

"Which noun denotes the thing that acts ? Ans. Wind. Which noun denotes the thing acted upon ? Ans. Leaves. Which word expresses the action of the wind upon the leaves ? Ans. The verb shakes.

Point out the nouns which denote the actor, and the thing acted upon, in the following sentences.

The sun melts the snow. The boy strikes the bell.

The wind drives the ship. The hawk seizes the dove.

The frost swells the ground. The rose perfumes the air.

In what condition or relation is the noun " sun," in the first sentence ? Ans. In the condition or relation which denotes the thing that acts. In what state or relation is the word " snow " ? Ans. In the state or relation to denote the thing acted upon.

The condition or relation of a noun in a sentence, is called its case.

The noun which denotes the doer or the thing spoken of, is in the nominative case.

The noun which denotes the thing acted upon, is in the objective

case.*

* Th9 subject of a verb in the passive form Is an exception to this remark.

Point out the nominative and objective cases in the sentences above.

Note. — The cases of nouns need to be illustrated more full}' than the limits of these first lessons will permit. But the teacher will be able by a little oral instruction, to make the subject intelligible to young learners. In this connection maybe explained the difference between a transitive and an intransitive verb ; and also the number and gender of nouns.

LESSON XL (Prepositions, $c.)

Write, " Bain falls — the clouds."

Place some word before " the clouds " to make sense. They went — Boston — the cars.

Place a word before " Boston," and one before " the cars," to make sense.

The words which have been supplied are called prepositions. For further explanation aiid exercises, see § 6.

Write, " James — Charles — Thomas are brothers." " George reads — writes." What words should be supplied to connect James with Charles ? Charles with Thomas ? reads with writes ?

He is happy because he is good.

What word connects he is happy, with he is good f The part of speech used to connect sentences or words, is called the conjunction. See § 11.

Interjections are exclamatory words ; as, ! ah ! alas ! See §14.

LESSON XII.

When the parts of speech and their offices are well understood, the learner can proceed to the exercise of forming sentences, gradually extending them by joining qualifying words to the principal parts, according to the following method.

Sentence. The wind drives.

Join an adjective. — The tempestuous wind drives. Join an objective case. — The tempestuous wind drives the ship. Join an adverb. — The tempestuous wind drives the ship violently. Join a preposition and ( The tempestuous wind drives the ship violently a noun following. ( against the rocJcs.

Extend the following sentences in a similar way.

The horse draws — The scholar learns — ■

The sun warms — Birds build —

The tree bears — The tiger seizes —

Such exercises can be varied or extended at the pleasure of the teacher. Remark. — Exercises of this kind not only impart an interest to the study of Grammar, but also serve to facilitate the progress of the young learner, in acquiring a knowledge of the essential principles of language.

LESSONS FOR PARSING.

LESSON I.

Point out the nouns, verbs, and adjectives, in the lines below : Cassar, yesterday, shines, useful, dog, white, barks, runs, king, proper, rales, master, Cato, wise, sees, strives. Point out the adjectives and the adverbs in the same lines.

Direction. — The noun which denotes that of which something is said, is in the nominative case.

The bird sings. The dogs howl. Men labor. Time flies. The moon is bright. The stars twinkle.

LESSON II.

Direction. — Some adjectives are joined to nouns, to qualify their meaning ; as, A good man ; good qualifies man. Mention what the adjectives qualify in the following expressions :

Tall trees. Pale moon. Lurid sky. The day is long. A mild disposition. A rapid current A florid countenance. The sky is blue. A fleet horse. A ferocious tiger. A stormy night. Time is short.

lesson in.

Direction. — A verb is used to assert something about that which its nominative denotes ; as, The rain falls ; the verb falls is used to assert something about rain.

Point out the nominative case, and the word which is used to assert something.

Charles reads. James studies. The farmer ploughs. The fire burns. The coachman drives. The scholar learns. Sweet music charms. The tall tree bends.

LESSON IV.

Direction. — The noun which follows a transitive * verb is in the objective case ; as, The miser loves gold ; gold is in the objective case.

* For an explanation of transitive verbs, See § 3.

Point out the nouns in the objective case in the following sentences. Charles reads his book. James studies his lesson. The farmer ploughs his ground. The fire burns the wood. The coachman drives his team. The scholar gains knowledge.

LESSON Y.

Direction. — -Adverbs are joined to verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs, to modify their meaning.

Note. — Adverbs may be generally known by asking how ? when? or how much ? the word that answers is the adverb.

The bird flies, [how ?] Am. Swiftly ; swiftly is the adverb. He is very ill ; how ill ? the adverb answers.

Point out the adverbs in the following sentences, and show to what words they are joined.

The boat arrived to day. The ship was launched yesterday. I dislike his conduct exceedingly. I esteemed him too highly. He is very negligent. She sings sweetly.

LESSON VI.

Direction. — A preposition connects the noun following it, in sense, to some word preceding it ; as, He returnedyVom Boston ; from connects Boston with returned.

Mention what words the prepositions connect in the following sentences. For a list of prepositions, see § 7.

He dwells in the city. The ship has sailed for London. He was buried beneath the river. The boy stood on the burning deck. The soldiers were in the camp. The city was taken by the Americans. The hill slopes towards the East. The Mexicans were conquered in the battle.

LESSON vn.

Point out the different parts of speech and show their relation.

The Americans conquered the Mexicans in the battle at Palo Alto. The army under General Scott captured the fine city of Vera Cruz. The robin sings sweetly in the Spring. The flowers bloom in the meadow. The lambs skip over the hills. Spring is the most delightful season of the year.

GRAMMAR.

English Grammar is the science which teaches the principles of the English language.

GENERAL DIVISIONS AND TEEMS.

1. English Grammar is generally divided into four parts, — • Orthography, Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody,

2. Orthography, (Greek orthos, "correct," and grapho, "to write/'') treats of letters, and teaches their power and proper use.

3. Etymology, (Greek etumon, "true and proper use," and logos, " a word,") treats of words, and teaches their derivation, classes, and variations.

4. Syntax, (Greek suntaxis, "the act of arranging,") treats of sentences, and teaches the proper construction of words in forming them.

5. Prosody, (Greek prosodia,) treats of accent, quantity and versification.

Note. — This division of the subject is not strictly adhered to in this work.

14 LETTEBS. — VOWEXS.

Part I. Orthography

LETTERS.

6. A letter is a character used in writing or printing, to rep* resent an articulate sound.

7. Before letters were invented, pictures or symbols were employed in writing, called hieroglyphics.

8. The English alphabet consists of twenty-six letters, which are usually divided into two classes, called vowels and consonants.

Note.— The word " Alphabet" is derived from alpha, beta, the names of the first two letters of the Greek Alphabet. The term has reference only to the arrangement of the letters; as, A, B, &c.

VOWELS.

9. Those letters which represent a free, uninterrupted sound, are called vowels, (Lat. vocalis, " that may be sounded " ;) as a, e, i, o, u; and w and y, when not occurring at the beginning of a word or a syllable.

EXERCISES.

1. Sound a in all without articulating the 11; sound a in at without articu lating the t; also, a in ape without articulating the^; also, a in arm without articulating the r.

2. Sound the a in the following words ; first pronouncing the word, then omitting the letters which follow the a, then sounding the a alone.

bate — ba — a bat — ba — a bar — ba — a ball — ba — a

fate — fa — a fat — fa — a far — fa — a fall — fa — a

mate — ma — a mat — ma — a mar — ma — a wall — wa — a

CONSONANTS. — MUTES. — SEMIVOWELS, ETC. 15

Treat the other vowels in a similar manner, in the following words : 1 — e 2 — e 1 — * 2 — i.

eke — e elk — e ice — i in — i

mete — me — e met — me — e mice — mi — i mill — mi — i

deep — dee — e set — se — e pine — pi — i pin — pi — i

1 — o 2 — o 3 — o promiscuous.

old - o off- o move - mo — o fate, fall, far, fat.

hope - ho -o not-no-o prove- pro -o me, met.

1 — u 2 — u 3 — u mite, did.

tnbe-tn — u tub-tu-u full-fu-n note, nor, move,

lute - In -n mug-mu-u pull-pu-u tune, tnn, full.

CONSONANTS.

10. Letters which are used only in connection with vowels for the purpose of articulation, are called consonants. (Lat. consonans, " sounding together.")

11. B, c (hard,) g (hard,) k, p, £, are called mutes, — they represent no audible sound.

12. O (soft,)/, g (soft,) A,y, r, s, v, x, z, are called semivowels, — they represent sounds obstructed by organs nearly closed.

13. L, m, ?i, r, are called liquids, — they easily coalesce with the sound of other letters with which they are associated.

EXERCISE.

Endeavor to sound b, k, p, t, c, g, without the a. What are these letters called ? Why ?

Pronounce ef, ge,ja, re, se 1 ve, ex, ze.

Sound f, g, h, j, r, s, v, x, z, without the e. Do these represent a full sound ? What are they called ? Why ?

Pronounce the following words ; and as far as possible sound the consonants alone.

1. mutes. 2. semivowels. 3. liquids.

bat — b — t sauce — s — c lamp — 1 — m

pat — p — t sex — s — x land — 1 — n

quake — q — k jot— j — t man — m — n

14. The consonants b, p, m, w, v, are called labials, (Lat. labia, " a lip,") because the lips are employed in articulating them.

15. The consonants d, t, c (soft,) g (soft,) j, $, and z (sibilant or hissing,) are called dentals, (Lat. dens, " a tooth,") — the; are articulated by pressing the tongue upon the teeth.

16. The consonants k, c (hard,) g (hard,) and^ (at the beginning of a syllable,) are called palatals — they are articulated bj pressing the tongue against the palate.

17. W and y are consonants when they begin a word or a syllable.

SOUNDS OF THE VOWELS *

18. The vowel a has four sounds peculiar to itself; as,

1. a in fate, 2. a in fat, 3. a in far, 4. a in fall. It is also used to represent the sound of e in many, and o in what.

E

19. The vowel e has two sounds .peculiar to itseii; as,

1. e in mete, 2. e in met.

It is also used to represent the second sound of a in there ; the second sound of i in England ; and the second sound of u in her.

S

20. The vowel i has two sounds peculiar to itself ; as,

1. i in p£ne, 2. i in pin.

It is also used to represent the first sound of e in machine and the second sound of u in bird.

* The analysis of the sounds of the vowels and consonants here given is taken by permission from a pamphlet by E. M. Thurston, a.m., just published. A chart ingeniously exhibiting the same analysis, and recently preparedly Mr. T., is commended to those who wish to see a concise and philosophical representation of the elements and sounds of the English Language.

SOUNDS OF THE CONSONANTS. 17

21. Tne vowel o has three sounds peculiar to itself; as, 1. o in note, 2. o in not, 3. o in move.

It is also nsed to represent the second sound of u in dove, and the sound of w united with u in one.

u

22. The vowel u has three sounds peculiar to itself; as,

1. u in twbe, 2. u in twb, 3. u in Ml.

It is also use'd to represent the second sound of e in bwry ; the second sound of i in b asy ; the sound of w in qwoit, and the sound of yu in union.

EXERCISE.

Give the vowel sounds in the following words :

Ale, arm, law, cat, bat, lard, hard, ball, fall, what, wasp, wash. Eel, me, elk, term, mild, mint, marine, brute, but, pull.

SOUNDS OF THE CONSONANTS.

23. Each of the following consonants and combinations of consonants has but one sound.

1. b as in Site, Jc as in Site, p as in j?ail, I as in ?ate, r as in rate, v as in vain, sh as in s/iall, zh like s in pleasure, ng as in tiling, th sharp as in thm, ill flat as in thou,j as in t /oy, m as in man.

The consonant h is an aspirate, and has one sound as in hand.

In the word cupboard^ has the sound of b.

In the word hallelujah/ has the sound of #.

24. Each of the following consonants ha3 one sound peculiar

to itself, and is used to represent one or more of the sounds of

other consonants, as follows :

d as in olate, and represents j as in soldier.

/as in /an, " " v as in of.

g as in #ave, " " j as gem.

n as in note, " " ng as in si?agular.

s as in sin, " " z as in his, sh as in swgar, and zh as in pleasure.

t as in time, tt " sh as in nation, and ch as in nature.

w as in wave, " " u as in brown.

y as in yet, " M i as in tyrant.

z as in zone, " " zh as in azure.

Ch, also, has its own sound as in church, and represents the sound of sh as m machine, h as in chorus, and Jzw as in cAoir.

Cand G are hard before a, o, «, r, ?, and soft before e, £, and #. 2*

SUBSTITUTES, OR EQUIVALENTS.

CONSONANT SUBSTITUTES.

25. Substitutes are characters which have no sound peculiar to themselves, but are used to represent the sound of other letters.

EXAMPLES.

1. The character c represents Jc before a, o, u, l,r; and the sound of s before e, i, and y ; the sound of z in sacrifice, and the -sound of sh as in ocean.

Q represents the sound of Jc as in liquid.

X u " ffz as in ezact, and z as in acanthus.

Ph " " fas in phlegm, and v as in Stephen.

Gh " " f as in cough, and Jc as in hougli.

VOWEL SUBSTITUTES.*

A a represents a as in Baalam.

A e " long e as in Caesar, and short e as in diaeresis.

A i " a as in plaid, e as in again, i long as in aisle, i short,

as in villain, and u short, as in Britain.

2. ^Lo represents the first sound of a as in gaol, and the second sound of o as in extraordinary.

S. Au represents the second sound of a as in draught, and the first sound of a as in gauge, the third sound of a as in aunt, the fourth sound of a as in caught, the first sound of o as in hautboy, and the second sound of o, (or the fourth sound of a) as in lawrel.

4. Aw represents a as in law Ay represents the first sound of a as in day and the second sound of e as in says.

5. Ea represents the first sound of a as in steak, the third sound of a as in heart, the first sound of e as in tea, the second sound of e as in head, and the second sound of u as in vengeance.