the letter R. Those imperfects and participles that are placed first in the list, are preferable to those that occupy the second place. The number of defective and irregular verbs, is about 177.

REM. 2. Several verbs, which formerly had a in the imperfect tense, now have o, u, or i; as, bare, brake, drave, gat, rang, sang, sank, sput, spake, sprang, sware, and tare, for bore, broke, drove, got, rung, sung, sunk, spit, spoke, sprung, swore, and tore. The latter forms are considered the more correct.

REM. 3. The following perfect participles formerly terminated with en, but this termination is now obsolescent, and the terminations of some participles exhibited in the list are generally used; as, baken, boughten, bounden, chidden, cloven, drunken, foughten, gotten, tolden, ridden, shapen, haven, sitten, slidden, spitten, stridden, stricken, swollen, shriven, waxen, etc.

REM. 4. Sometimes the imperfect tense and perfect participle are terminated by t instead of ed; as, tost for tossed; crackt for cracked; learnt for learned. This termination t is in some cases allowable; but generally the regular termination ed is preferable, and accords better with the use of the best authors.

REM. 5. There are about 170 irregular verbs, which are most of them monosyllables. These are mostly derived from the Saxon. The following list exhibits the conjugation of the irregular verbs, as they are now used. In the cases in which the regular form is to be preferred, it is given entire, those in which the regular form is less authorized, are marked with the letter R.

How many irregular and defective verbs are there? What do verbs, which formerly had a in the imperfect tense, now have? Give examples. Name some perfect participles, in which the termination en has become obsolescent. Instead of ed, what other termination is sometimes used?

§ 168. Defective verbs are those that want some of their principal parts. When any of the principal parts are wanting, the tenses derived from them are also wanting.

The defective verbs are beware, may, can, must, might, could, would, should, shall, ought, and quoth.

REMARK. Ought is not varied in familiar style, but in grave style est is annexed in the second person singular of the present indicative. Ought is sometimes used in the imperfect tense. Quoth is obsolete, except in ludicrous style, and is not varied. It is generally used in the imperfect tense in the third person with the nominative following it; as, quoth he. Quoth is supposed by some to be derived from quod which is sometimes used for quoth in old English works.

IMPERSONAL VERBS.

169. Impersonal verbs are those which can be used only in the third person singular, from the nature of the subject to which they refer; as, it rains, it snows, it thaws, it thunders, it lightens, it hails. The pronoun it which is always joined to these verbs,

FIRST COURSE.

What are defective verbs? What are impersonal verbs? What does the pronoun it joined with these verbs represent?

SECOND COURSE.

When is ought varied? When is quoth used ?