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604. Inflection of nouns. Besides the four cases used in English (§ 606) Latin has two others: the vocative (usually like the nominative in form), corresponding to the nominative of address (§ 471); and the ablative, which expresses cause, manner, means, and the like. The Latin noun victoria, victory, is declined as follows:

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The Indo-European word fish is declined in several languages as follows (in Middle English the endings commonly become the same; in Modern English they almost disappear; § 601):

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605. Endings of Latin and Greek nouns. Latin and Greek nouns are declined in several different ways, according to the ending of the nominative singular. The following table contains endings of the nominative singular and the nominative plural, as illustrated by the nouns in §39; the Latin ending ae is written æ in English:

N. SING. N. PL.

Latin: -a

-ae

-us

-i

-us

-us

-S

-es

-um

-a

-a

-es

-es

Greek: -on

-a

-a

-is

-es

EXAMPLES

alumna, alumnæ; larva, larvæ.
alumnus, alumni; fungus, fungi.

apparatus, apparatus; plexus, plexus.

crux (for 'crucs '), cruces.

datum, data; stratum, strata.

caput, capita; genus, genera (for 'genesa '). species, species; series, series.

phenomenon, phenomena.

miasma (for 'miasmat '), miasmata.
crisis, crises; ellipsis, ellipses.

606. Modern English; cases. Although Modern English has lost nearly all the endings, the uses of four cases are still distinct :

The nominative = the subject (§ 40), predicate nominative (§ 158), or nominative of address (§ 471).

The genitive = possession and the like. (Commonly called the possessive case; § 41.)

The dative = the indirect object (or, dative of reference or concern, denoting the person referred to or concerned). (Commonly called the objective case; § 212.)

The accusative = the direct object. (Commonly called the objective case; § 40. The predicate objective, § 214, may be called the adjunct accusative.)

The following examples illustrate certain uses of the cases: 1. The sun has set. (Subject; § 40.)

His coming was a surprise. (Predicate nominative; § 158.)

2. We fed the animals. (Direct object; § 156.)

3. The boy's hat blew away. (Possession; § 41.)

The law's delay (= delay connected with the law). (Genitive of connection.)

Boys' hats (= hats for boys). (Genitive of connection.)

Cæsar's conquests. (Genitive of connection.)

They won by a boat's length.

(Genitive of measure.) Two hours' time was enough. (Genitive of measure.)

The boy's temptation was great. (Objective genitive; the boy was the object toward which the temptation went.)

The boy's love for his sister grew. (Subjective genitive; the boy loved; that is, he was the source or subject from which the love came.)

4. He gave me a top. (Indirect object; § 212.)

Take me a picture of that horse. (Dative of reference.)

Pick her some flowers. (Dative of reference.)

It will last them a lifetime. (Dative of reference.)

I stared him in the face. (Dative of reference.)

607. Inflection. In Modern English the accusative-dative is like the nominative; but some pronouns have two forms: I, me; he, him; who, whom. (See §§ 59, 76, 83, 98.)

608. Genitive. Some of the possessive adjectives (§ 118) are originally genitives of the personal pronouns. In Shakespeare are still to be found examples of this original use as genitives, with relative pronouns referring to them :

1. And do you now strew flowers in his way

That comes in triumph over Pompey's blood? (= in the way of him that comes, etc.)

2. Her prayers, whom heaven delights to hear. (= the prayers of her, whom, etc.)

3. Upon their woes whom fortune captivates. (= upon the woes of them whom, etc.)

609. Possessive adjective for genitive. A possessive adjective was sometimes used after a noun as a substitute

for the ending of the genitive (-es, -s); this usage is found in literature from the Anglo-Saxon period down to recent times, and still exists among the uneducated:

1. God his nama (God his name). Instead of 'Godes nama' (God's name).

2. Once in a sea-fight 'gainst the count his gallies, I did some service. SHAKESPEARE.

3. Abram his name is changed.— Genesis, xvii, contents (King James Bible).

4. Martha Wilkins her book.

610. Apostrophe in genitive. On account of the similarity and identity in spelling, and the use of the apostrophe to indicate the omission of e in such forms as fox's, the ending of the genitive singular (-es, -is, -ys) came to be regarded as a shortened form of the possessive adjective his (is, ys), and the custom arose of using the apostrophe with all words in the genitive, to indicate the omission of a part of the word. The genitive plural likewise received the apostrophe, as if it also were a shortened form.

611. Adjectives. In adjectives in Modern English the endings have disappeared. In Anglo-Saxon the adjective was inflected for all three genders, masculine, feminine, and neuter, as is still done in German.

612. Inflection of verbs. In verbs in Modern English the endings have almost disappeared. The following inflections are the present indicative of the Indo-European verb sit:

MIDDLE ENG. MODERN ENG. GERMAN

LATIN

ANGLO-SAXON

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In Middle English three forms of the language were in use, the Southern, the Midland, and the Northern. The plural sitteth is found in the Southern language, and is closest to the AngloSaxon. In the Midland language the plural was sitten or sitte. This is the language from which Modern English came. It was used in London, at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and by the first great English poet, Chaucer, who was born in London about 1340 and lived till 1400.

613. Northern plural in -s. In the Northern language (§ 612) the plural of verbs ended in -s (as, sittes). This plural is frequent in Shakespeare. Most of these words have unfortunately been altered by modern editors; when there is a rime, however, as in the second example below, the plural in -s cannot be changed:

1. Ill deeds is doubled with an evil word.

2. She lifts the coffer-lids that close his

eyes,

Where, lo, two lamps burnt out in darkness lies.

NOTE. The plural in -s is still found in Scotland and northern England: All my hopes is lost.

614. Infinitive. The present infinitive of sit (§ 612) is as follows: sedere, sittan, sitten (or sitte), sit, sitzen. The infinitive is a verbal noun (§ 215). In Anglo-Saxon and Middle English it had two forms. One of these forms was for the nominative and the accusative; the other was for the dative (§ 606), which took the preposition to: as, sittan (Middle English sitten or sitte), to sittanne (Middle English to sittenne, to sittene, to sitten, or to sitte).

615. Dative infinitive. The dative infinitive (§ 614) is the origin of the infinitive used to express purpose, and of the adverbial infinitive :

1. We came to see you. (Infinitive of purpose; see § 475, 3.) 2. That is easy to do. (Adverbial infinitive.)

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