PART II.

ETYMOLOGY.

Etymology treats of the different parts of speech, with their classes and modifications.

1.-THE SENTENCE.

In the utterance of any definite thought, such as, Birds fly-The sun shines-Fishes swim, there is obviously some person or thing spoken of, and something said of that person or thing. The former is called the subject, and the latter the predicate. When united so as to make complete sense, these form what is called a proposition; and a proposition, or a combination of two or more propositions, forms a sentence.

Thus Man is mortal is a sentence containing one proposition; and Art is long, and time is fleeting is a sentence containing two propositions.

The distinction between the subject and the predicate of a sentence should be clearly understood. This distinction is marked in the following sentences:

The following definitions will now be understood.

A sentence is an assemblage of words, making complete sense; as, "Reward sweetens labor.". "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

Every sentence must contain two principal parts; namely, the subject and the predicate.

Whatever is directly spoken of in the sentence is the subject; as, "The sun has set."- "Can you write?"

That which is said of the subject is the predicate; as, "Beauty fades."

Any combination of the subject and predicate is called a proposition.

Words added to other words in a sentence to modify or limit their meaning are called adjuncts; as, "A good scholar rapidly improves."

Sentences are divided, with respect to the nature of the propositions which they contain, into four classes ; declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory.

A sentence is declarative, when it expresses an affirmation or negation; interrogative, when it expresses a question; imperative, when it expresses a command; and exclamatory, when it expresses an exclamation.

Exercises.

1. Point out the subject and the predicate in the following sentences, and state to which of the four classes each sentence belongs.

OBS.—In interrogative and exclamatory sentences, the words are usually transposed; in imperative sentences, the subject is often understood; as, Bring me a slate; " in which the subject is thou or you, understood.

saw.

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The tree bears fruit. The ox bears a yoke. The carpenter uses a Avarice causes crime. The miser loves gold. The boy has told an untruth. The merchant has made a fortune. The river overflowed its banks. Lend Charles a book. Has Mary received the letter? Will Richard return soon? How hard a task he has! The scholar's diligence deserves a reward. Do not injure your neighbor. How kindly he treated his schoolmate! Has Robert found his pencil?

2. Write predicates for the following subjects.

Flowers. Oranges. Industry. Honesty. An industrious boy. A dishonest clerk. An amiable disposition. A good character. George Washington. Napoleon Bonaparte. Queen Victoria.

4. Insert as many adjuncts as possible to the subject and predicate of each of the following sentences.

The horses ran.

Example.

The wild horses ran away very swiftly.

Birds fly. The

The ship sailed. Flowers bloom. Flowers fade. sun shines. The scholar improves. The oxen are grazing. The man is ploughing. The dog is barking. The woman is washing. The storm rages. The wind blows. The lightning flashes. The thunder peals.

II. THE PARTS OF SPEECH.

The words that compose a sentence are used for various purposes in connection with the subject or predicate. Some are names of persons or things; some express action; some, quality; others, relation; and some are used to connect words or propositions.

For this reason the words or parts of a sentence have been arranged in classes, called the Parts of Speech.

The Parts of Speech, or sorts of words, in English, are ten; namely, the article, the noun, the adjective, the pronoun, the verb, the participle, the adverb, the conjunction, the preposition, and the interjection.

An article is the word the, an, or a, which we put before nouns to limit their signification; as, The air, the stars; an island, a ship.

A noun is the name of any person, place, or thing, that can be known or mentioned; as, George, York, man, apple, truth.

An adjective is a word added to a noun or pronoun, and generally expresses quality; as, A wise man; a new book. You two are diligent.

A pronoun is a word used instead of a noun: as, "The boy loves his book; he has long lessons, and he learns them well."

A verb is a word that signifies to be, to act, or to be acted upon: as, I am, I rule, I am ruled; I love, thou lovest, he loves.

A participle is a word derived from a verb, participating the properties of a verb, and of an adjective or a noun.

It is generally formed by adding ing, d, or ed, to the verb: thus, from the verb rule, are formed three participles: two simple and one compound; as, 1, ruling; 2, ruled; 3, having ruled.

An adverb is a word added to a verb, a participle, an adjective, or another adverb; and generally expresses time, place, degree, or manner; as, "They are now here, studying very diligently."

A conjunction is a word used to connect words or sentences in construction, and to show the dependence of the terms so connected; as, "Thou and he are happy, because you are good."

A preposition is a word used to express some relation of different things or thoughts to each other, and is generally placed before a noun or a pronoun; as, "The paper lies before me on the desk."

An interjection is a word that is uttered merely to indicate some strong or sudden emotion of the mind; as, Oh! alas! ah! poh! pshaw! avaunt!

Definitions of Terms.

A definition of anything or class of things is such a description of it, as distinguishes that entire thing or class from every thing else, by briefly telling what it is.

A rule of grammar is some law, more or less general, by which custom regulates and prescribes the right use of language.

A praxis is a method of exercise, showing the learner how to proceed. (The word literally signifies action, doing, practice, or formal use.)

An example is a particular instance or model, serving to prove or illustrate some given proposition or truth.

An exercise is some technical performance required of the learner, in order to test his knowledge or skill by use.

Parsing is the resolving or explaining of a sentence, or of some related word or words, according to the definitions and rules of grammar.

Exercises in Parsing.

Praxis I.-Etymological.

In the First Praxis, it is required of the pupil, after analyzing the sentence, by pointing out the subject and predicate, with the adjuncts in each, to distinguish the different parts of speech, and to assign a reason for such distinction, by citing the proper definition, and adapting it to each particular case. Thus :

EXAMPLE PARSED.

"The patient ox submits to the yoke, and meekly performs the labor required of him."

1. Submits is a verb, because it signifies action;
Performs is also a verb, for the same reason.

2. Ox is a noun, because it is the name of a thing;

Yoke and labor are nouns, for the same reason.

3. The is an article, because it limits the signification of ox, yoke, or labor-the noun before which it is placed.

4. Patient is an adjective, because it expresses the quality of the ox.

5. Him is a pronoun, because it is used instead of the noun ox.

6. Required is a participle, because it expresses action like a verb, and qualifies the noun labor like an adjective.

7. Meekly is an adverb, because it is added to the verb performs, and expresses

manner.

8. And is a conjunction, because it connects the predicates containing the verbs submits and performs.

9. To is a preposition, because it expresses the relation of the verb submits to the noun yoke.

Note. The numbers are here used to indicate the order in which the pupil should, at first, be required to distinguish the parts of speech in the sentences given in this exercise. The verb is made the first in this series, because it is the word to which all others have an immediate or remote relation, and because it is easily recognized, and, when discovered, leads the mind necessarily to a knowledge of the other parts of speech com