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ever1 has made extensive observation, knows that the human heart is very deceitful. Which of them will you take? His efforts will be in vain whatsoever3 means he adopts. Each of the family is well trained. Either of these examples is exceptionable. No one's interest is concerned except mine. Love one another."

VERBS.

122. A verb is a word which affirms, commands, supposes, denies or interrogates something with respect to a person or thing.

123. That of which something is affirmed, commanded, supposed, denied, or interrogated is the subject; as, "Man is."

In this proposition, man is the subject, and the verb is affirms simply the existence of the subject man. "The boy reads his book." In this proposition, the verb affirms mental and physical action of the subject boy exerted upon the book. "The child is instructed by his parents." In this proposition, the verb is instructed affirms something received by the subject child from the parents. The same may be said of the subject when it represents inanimate objects. On these principles, verbs are divided into four different classes, according to their meaning.

§ 124. There are three kinds of verbs; transitive, intransitive, and passive.

§ 125. A transitive verb, expresses an action which terminates upon some person or thing as its object; as, "Charles studies his lessons;" "John cultivates the fields."

§ 126. An intransitive verb, expresses a simple state

FIRST COURSE.

What is a verb? How many kinds of verbs are there? What is a transitive verb? An intransitive verb ?

SECOND COURSE.

What is the subject of a proposition?

1 106, R. 8. 26 103, R. 1. 5 § 110, R. 1.

3 106, R. 16.

6 110, R. 3.

4113.

of being, or an action which is limited to the subject; "The horse runs,’ ," "The child walks," "John sits,'

as,
"Man is."

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REMARK 1. The term transitive, when applied to verbs, denotes that the action expressed by the verb, passes from the subject to an object.

REM. 2. The term intransitive, when applied to verbs, denotes that the action expressed by the verb does not pass from the subject to the object.

§ 127. A passive verb, expresses an action that is received by the subject; as, "Henry is instructed by his teacher;" "A dutiful child is loved by his parents."

§ 128. The passive verb is formed by annexing the perfect participles of an active transitive verb to the neuter verb to be; as, 66 am loved;" .99 66 am persecuted;" "to be persecuted."

§ 129. It is regular when it ends with ed.

66

REMARK 1. The passive verb, present tense, is sometimes formed by annexing the present passive participle to the neuter verb; as, "The house is being built;" He is being loved." This mode of expression does not accord with the style of the best writers.

REM. 2. When a present participle of a transitive or intransitive verb, is annexed to the neuter verb to be, the combination forms a transitive or intransitive verb, according as the verb from which the participle is derived is transitive or intransitive.

REM. 3. When the perfect participle of an intransitive verb is annexed to the neuter verb to be, the combination forms an intransitive verb, and not a neuter verb as some

FIRST COURSE.

What is a passive verb? How is the passive verb formed? When is it regular ?

SECOND COURSE.

What is the meaning of the term transitive? What does intransitive mean? When a present participle is annexed to the neuter verb to be, what does the combination form? When the perfect participle of an intransitive verb is annexed to the neuter verb to be, what does the combination form?

"The sun is

"He is come;" suppose; as, "He is gone;" risen." Each of these expressions denotes action.

REM. 4. The tenses of those verbs that are formed by annexing the present participle of an active verb to the verb to be are precise and definite, and by some are called the definite tenses. I was walking at sunset.' Here sunset specifies the time of walking. The time is specified by terms that are closely connected in the sentence.

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REM. 5. If transitive and passive verbs be compared, their meaning will be found to be essentially the same. passive voice may be substituted at pleasure for the transitive, by making the object of the transitive the subject of the passive, and placing the subject of the transitive after the verb with a preposition; as, "John reads the book," or, "The book is read by John." The transitive form is used to direct the attention especially to the subject as the actor; the passive chiefly to exhibit the object acted upon.

REM. 6. The agent of a passive verb and the object of a transitive verb, are often understood and left indefinite; as, "Virtue is rewarded,” i. e., by men; "John was studying," i. e., his lesson.

REM. 7. Most transitive verbs may be used either transitively or intransitively.

REM. 8. Some verbs are used both as neuter and transitive; as, "Here on this couch I rest." In this case, rest is a neuter verb denoting a simple state. "On the promises of the Gospel I rest my hopes.' In this case, rest is a tran

sitive verb.

REM. 9. A passive verb may be known by its admitting after it, in all cases, an agent expressed or understood.

§ 130. Verbs are divided, with respect to their form, into the classes regular, irregular, and defective. § 131. A regular verb forms the imperfect tense,

FIRST COURSE.

How are verbs divided? What is a regular verb?

SECOND COURSE.

What difference in meaning is there between a transitive and a pas sive verb? How is the agent of a passive, and the object of a transitive verb often left? How may most transitive verbs be used? Are any verbs used as neuter and transitive also? Give examples.

of the indicative mood and perfect participle by annexing to the simple form of the verb ed, or d only when the verb ends with e; as, love, loved.

REMARK 1. When a verb ends with y after a consonant, y is exchanged for i, and ed is annexed to form the imperfect tense and perfect participle; as, magnify, magnified, magnified. But when the y is preceded by a vowel, it is not changed, and ed is annexed as before; as, delay, delayed, delayed.

REM. 2. Monosyllables and verbs accented on the last syllable, ending with a single consonant after a single vowel, double the final consonant and add the ed to form the imperfect tense and perfect participle; as, omit, omitted, omitted; quit, quitted, quitted.

REM. 3. When an active verb is formed by the combination of the neuter verb to be and an active participle, it is regular or irregular according as the participle is derived from a regular or irregular verb.

REM. 4. Verbs are often compounded of a preposition and verb; as, undergo, overlook, withstand. In these compounds, the preposition is prefixed to the verb. But sometimes the preposition follows the verb, and affects it in the same manner as if it preceded it. Whether it precedes or follows it, if it gives a new meaning, the preposition forms a part of the verb; as, to cast, means to throw, but cast up means to compute. Smile on; build up, etc.

EXERCISES FOR DISTINGUISHING DIFFERENT VERBS.

I walk, I love friends, I set, I am, I was loved, I have been taught, the horse runs.

Which of the preceding verbs are transitive? Which, in transitive? Which, passive?

SECOND COURSE.

When a verb ends with y, preceded by a consonant, what change is made to form the imperfect tense? How do monosyllables and verbs accented on the last syllable, ending with a single consonant, form the imperfect? If an active verb is formed by the combination of the verb to be and an active participle, when is it regular or irregular? Are verbs ever compounded with prepositions?

MODIFICATIONS OF VERBS.

§ 132. Verbs have four modifications; modes, tenses, number, and person.

MODES.

§ 133. Mode is the manner of representing an action or state expressed by the verb,

§ 134. There are four modes, the indicative, the subjunctive, the infinitive, and the imperative.

REMARK. The potential mode is not adopted in this grammar, because all the verbs to which it is applied may, with perfect consistency, come under the definition of the indicative mode. In each of the propositions, Charles rides and Charles can ride, an affirmation is made. The only difference between the two propositions consists in what is affirmed. In the proposition, Charles rides, a real action is affirmed; but in the proposition, Charles can ride, a possible action is affirmed. The difference, then, not referring to the affirmation, but to what is affirmed, or to the different meaning of the verbs, should not be admitted as a principle on which a distinct mode may be formed. If so, there may be as many modes as there are different meanings of verbs. Indeed, each verb has a meaning that differs more or less from the signification of every other, on such a principle of forming modes, there would be as many modes as verbs; and instead of four modes, we should have forty-three thousand, which is the number of verbs in the English language, according to Lowth. The propositions, "He may study," "He might study," "He could study," affirm an ability or power to study. The expression, "He must study," affirms a necessity of studying; and as the indicative mode affirms or denies something, or asks a question, all the verbs to which the potential mode has been applied by most authors, may with the utmost propriety be arranged under it.

FIRST COURSE,

as

How are verbs modified? What is mode? How many modes are there?

SECOND COURSE.

State reasons why the potential mode is not adopted in this grammar.

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