Immagini della pagina
PDF
ePub

Lives generally denotes privation; as, infidus, unfaithful: but when joined with verbs, increases their signification; as, indūro, to harden greatly. In some words in has two contrary senses; as, invõcatus, called upon, or not called upon. So infrēnātus, immutātus, insuetus, impensus, inhumatus, intentatus, &c. 2. PER commonly increases the signification; as, Percarus, percèler, percomis, percuriosus, perdifficilis, perelegans, pergrātus, pergrăvis, perhospitālis, perillustris, perlætus, &c. very dear, very swift, &c. 3. PRÆ sometimes increases; as, Præclarus, prædives, prædulcis, prædūrus, præpinguis, prævalidus; prævăleo, præpolleo: and also EX; as, Exclāmo, exaggĕro, exaugeo, excalefacio, extenuo, exhilaro; but EX sometimes denotes privation; as, Exsanguis, bloodless, pale; excors, exanimis, -mo, &c. 4. SUB often diminishes; as, Subalbidus, subabsurdus, subamārus, subdulcis, subgrandis, subgrăvis, subniger, &c. a little white or whitish, &c. DE often signifies downward; as, Decido, decurro, degrăvo, despicio, delabor: sometimes increases; as, deămor, demiror and sometimes expresses privation; as, Demens, decolor, deformis, &c.

OBS. 4. There are five or six syllables, namely, am, di or dis, re, se, con, which are commonly called Inseparable Prepositions, because they are only to be found in compound words: however, they generally add something to the signification of the words with which they are compounded; thus,

[blocks in formation]

An Interjection is an indeclinable word thrown in between the parts of a sentence, to express some passion or emotion of the mind.

Some Interjections are natural sounds, and common to all languages; as, Oh! Ah!

Interjections express in one word a whole sentence, and thus fitly represent the quickness of the passions.

The different passions have commonly different words to express them; thus,

[ocr errors]

1. JOY; as, evax hey, brave, lo!

2. GRIEF; as, ah, hei, heu, ehu! ah, alas, wo is me!

3. WONDER; as, pape! O strange! vah! hah!

4. PRAISE; as, euge! well done!

5. AVERSION; as, apage! away, begone, avaunt, off, fy, tush!

6. EXCLAIMING; as, Oh, proh, O!

7. SURPRISE or FEAR; as, atat! ha, aha!

8. IMPRECATION; as, va! wo, pox on't!

9. LAUGHTER; as, ha, ha, he!

10. SILENCING; as, au, 'st, pax! silence, hush, 'st!

11. CALLING; as, eho, ehodum, io, ho! soho, ho, O!

12. DERISION; as, hui! away with!

13. ATTENTION; as, hem! ha!

Some interjections denote several different passions; thus, Vah is used to express joy, and sorrow, and wonder, &c.

Adjectives of the neuter gender are sometimes used for interjections; as, Malum! with a mischief! Infandum! O shame! fy, fy! Misĕrum! O wretched! Nefas! O the villany!

CONJUNCTION.

A conjunction is an indeclinable word, which serves to join sentences together. Conjunctions, according to their different meaning, are divided into the following classes:

1. COPULATIVE; as, et, ac, atque, que, and; ĕtiam, quòque, item, also; cum, tum, both, and Also their contraries, nec, nèque, neu, neve, neither, nor.

2. DISJUNCTIVE; as, aut, ve, vel, seu, sive, either, or.

3. CONCESSIVE; as, etsi, etiamsi, tametsi, licet, quanquam, quamvis, though, alt...ugh, albeit.

4. ADVERSATIVE; as, sed, verùm, autem, at, ast, atqui, but; tamen, attămen, verumtamen, verumenimvēro, yet, notwithstanding, nevertheless.

5. CAUSAL; as, nam, namque, enim, for; quia, quippe, quantum, because; quòd, that

because.

6. ILLATIVE or RATIONAL; as, ergo, ideo, igitur, idcirco, itaque, therefore; quapropter quocirca, wherefore; proinde, therefore; cum, quum, seeing, since; quondoquidem, forasmuch as. 7. FINAL or PERFECTIVE; as, ut, uti, that, to the end that.

8. CONDITIONAL; as, si, sin, if; dum, modo, dummodo, provided, upon condition that; siquidem, if indeed.

9. EXCEPTIVE or RESTRICTIVE; as, ni, nisi, unless, except,

10. DIMINUTIVE; as, saltem, certe, at least.

11. SUSPENSIVE or DUBITATIVE; as, an, anne, num, whether; ne, annon, whether, not

necne, or not.

[ocr errors]

12. EXPLETIVE; as, autem, vero, now, truly ; quidení, equidem, indeed.

13. ORDINATIVE; as, deinde, thereafter; denique, finally; insuper, moreover; cætĕrum moreover, but, however.

14. DECLARATIVE; as, videlicet, scilicet, nempe, nimirum, &c. to wit, namely.

OBS. 1. The same words, as they are taken in different views, are both adverbs and conjunctions Thus, an, anne, &c. are either interrogative adverbs; as, An scribit? Does he write? or, suspensive conjunctions; as, Nescio an scribat, I know not if he writes.

OBS. 2. Some conjunctions, according to their natural order, stand first in a sentence; as, Ac, atque, nec, neque, aut, vel, sive, at, sed, verum, nam, quandoquidem, quocirca, quare, sin, siquidem, præterquam, &c. Some stand in the second place; as, Autem, vero, quoque, quidem, enim : and some may indifferently be put either first or second; as, Etiam, equidem, licet, quamvis, quanquam, tamen, attamen, namque, quod, quia, quoniam, quippe, utpote, ut, uti, ergo, ideo, igitur, idcirco, itaque, proinde, propterea, si, ni, nisi, &c. Hence arose the division of them into Prepositive, Subjunctive, and Common. To the subjunctive may be added these three, que, ve, ne, which are always joined to some other word, and are called Enclitics, because when put after long syllables, they make the accent incline to the foregoing syllable; as in the following verse,

Indoctusque pila, discíve, trochive, quiescit. Horat.

But when these enclitic conjunctions come after a short vowel, they do not affect its pronunciation; thus, Arbuteos fœtus montanăque fraga legebant. Ovid. SENTENCES.

A SENTENCE is any thought of the mind expressed by two or more words put together; as, Ego lego, I read. Puer legit Virgilium, the boy reads Virgil.

That part of grammar which teaches to put words rightly together in sentences, is called Syntax or Construction.

Words in sentences have a twofold relation to one another: namely, that of Concord or Agreement; and that of Government or Influence.

Concord, is when one word agrees with another in some accidents; as, in gender, number, person, or case.

Government, is when one word requires another to be put in a certain case, or mode.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF SYNTAX.

1. In every sentence there must be a verb and a nominative expressed or understood.

2. Every adjective must have a substantive expressed or understood.

3. All the cases of nouns, except the nominative and vocative, must be governed by some other word.

4. The genitive is governed by a substantive noun expressed or understood.

5. The dative is governed by adjectives and verbs.

[ocr errors]

6. The accusative is governed by an active verb, or by a preposition; or is placed before the infinitive.

7. The vocative stands by itself, or has an interjection joined with it.

8. The ablative is governed by a preposition expressed or understood.

9. The infinitive is governed by some verb or adjective.

All sentences are either SIMPLE Cr COMPOUND.

SIMPLE SENTENCES.

A simple sentence is that which has but one nominative, and one finite verb; that is, a verb in the indicative, subjunctive, or imperative mode.

In a simple sentence, there is only one Subject and one Attribute.
The SUBJECT is the word which marks the person or thing spoken of.
The ATTRIBUTE expresses what we affirm concerning the subject; as,

The boy reads his lesson: Here "the boy," is the Subject of discourse, or the person spoken of; "reads his lesson," is the Attribute, or what we affirm concerning the subject. The diligent boy reads his lesson carefully at home. Here we have still the same subject, "the boy," marked by the character of "diligent" added to it; and the same attribute, "reads his lesson," with the circumstances of manner and place subjoined, “carefully,” “at home.”

COMPOUND SENTENCES.

A compound sentence is that which has more than one nominative, or one finite verb.

A compound sentence is made up of two or more simple sentences or phrases, and is commonly called a Period.

The parts of which a compound sentence consists, are called Members or Clauses. In every compound sentence there are either several subjects, and one attribute, or several attributes, and one subject, or both several subjects and several attributes; that is, there are either several nominatives applied to the same verb, or several verbs applied to the same nominative, or both.

[ocr errors]

Every verb marks a judgment or attribute, and every attribute must have a subject. There must, therefore, be in every sentence or period as many propositions, as there are verbs of a finite mode.

Sentences are compounded by means of relatives and conjunctions; as, Happy is the man who loveth religion, and practiseth virtue.

CONCORD.

The following words agree together in a sentence: 1. An adjective with a substantive. 2. A verb with a nominative. 3. A relative with an antecedent. 4. A substantive with a substantive.

1. Agreement of an Adjective with a Substantive.

RULE I. The adjective agrees with its substantive, in number, case, and gender; as,

Bonus vir, a good man;

Femina casta, a chaste woman;

Dulce pomum, a sweet apple.

Boni viri, good men.

Feminae casta, chaste women.
Dulcia poma, sweet apples.

And so through all the cases and degrees of comparison.

This rule applies also to pronouns and participles; as, Meus liber, my book; ager colendus, a field to be tilled; Plur. Mei libri, agri colendi, &c.

OBS. 1. The substantive is frequently understood, or its place supplied by an infinitive; and then the adjective is put in the neuter gender; as, triste, sc. negotium, a sad thing, Virg. Tuum scire, the same with tua scientia, thy knowledge, Pers. We sometimes, however, find the substantive understood in the feminine; as, Non posteriores feram, sup. partes, Ter.

OBS. 2. An adjective often supplies the place of a substantive; as, Certus amicus, a sure friend; Bona ferina, good venison; Summum bonum, the chief good: Homo being understood to amicus, caro to ferina, and negotium to bonum, A substantive is sometimes used as an adjective; as, incola turba vocant, the inhabitants, Ovid Fast. 3. 582.

OBS. 3. These adjectives, primus, medius, ultimus, extremus, infimus, imus, summus, supremus, reliquus, cætera, usually signify the first part, the middle part, &c. of any thing: as, Media nox, the middle part of the night; Summa arbor, the highest part of a tree.

OBS. 4. Whether the adjective or substantive ought to be placed first in Latin, no certain rule can be given. Only if the substantive be a monosyllable, and the adjective a polysyllable, the substantive is elegantly put first; as, vir clarissimus, res præstantissima, &c.

2. Agreement of a Verb with a Nominative.

II. The verb agrees with its nominative case, in number and person; as,

Ego lego, I read ;

Tu scribis, Thou writest or you write;
Præceptor docet, the master teaches;

Nos legimus, We read.

Vos scribitis, Ye or you write.
Præceptores docent, Masters teach.

And so through all the modes, tenses, and numbers.

OBS. 1. Ego and nos are of the first person; tu and vos of the second person; ille, and all other words, of the third. The nominative of the first and second person is seldom expressed, unless for the sake of emphasis or distinction; as, tu es patronus, tu pater, Ter. Tu legis, ego

scribo.

OBS. 2. An infinitive, or some part of a sentence, often supplies the place of a nominative; as, Mentiri est turpe, to lie is base; Diu non perlitatum tenuit dictatorem, the sacrifice not being attended with favourable omens, detained the dictator for a long time, Liv. vii. 8. Sometimes the neuter pronoun id or illud is added, to express the meaning more strongly; as, Facere quæ libet, id est esse regem, Sallust.

OBS. 3. The infinitive mode often supplies the place of the third person of the imperfect of the indicative; as, Milites fugère, the soldiers fled, for fugiebant or fugere cœperunt. Invidere omncs mihi, for invidebant.

OBS. 4. A collective noun may be joined with a verb either of the singular or of the plural number; as, Multitudo stat, or stant, the multitude stands, or stand.

A collective noun when joined with a verb singular, expresses many considered as one whole; but when joined with a verb plural, signifies many separately, or as individuals. Hence, if an

adjective or participle be subjoined to the verb when of the singular number, they will agree both in gender and number with the collective noun; but if the verb be plural, the adjective or participle will be plural also, and of the same gender with the individuals of which the collective noun s composed; as, Pars erant casi: Pars obnixa trudunt, sc. formice, Virg. Æn. iv. 406. Magna pars raptæ, sc. virgines, Liv. i. 9. Sometimes, however, though more rarely, the adjective is thus used in the singular; as, Pars arduus, Virg. Æn. vii. 624.

THE CONSTRUCTION OF RELATIVES.

3. Agreement of the Relative with the Antecedent.

III. The relative Qui, Qua, Quod, agrees with its antecedent in gender, number, and person.

[blocks in formation]

IV. If no nominative come between the relative and the verb, the relative is the nominative to the verb; but when a nominative intervenes, the relative is governed by the verb, or some other word in the sentence.

OBS. 1. The relative must always have an antecedent expressed or understood, and therefore may be considered as an adjective placed between two cases of the same substantive, of which the one is always expressed, generally the former; as,

Vir qui (vir) legit; vir quem (virum) amo: Sometimes the latter; as, Quam quisque nôrit artem, in hac (arte) se exerceat, Cic. Eunuchum, quem dedisti nobis, quas turbas dedit, Ter. sc. Eunuchus Sometimes both cases are expressed; as, Erant omnino duo itinera, quibus itineribus domo exire possent, Cæs. Sometimes, though more rarely, both cases are omitted; as, Sunt, quos hoc genus minime juvat, for sunt homines, quos homines, &c. Hor.

OBS. 2. When the relative is placed between two substantives of different genders, it may agree in gender with either of them, though most commonly with the former; as,

Vultus quem dixere chaos, Ovid. Est locus in carcere, quod Tullianum appellatur, Sal. Animal, quem vocamus hominem, Cic. Cogito id quod res est, Ter. If a part of a sentence be the antecedent, the relative is always put in the neuter gender; as, Pompeius se afflixit, quod mihi est summo dolori, scil. Pompeium se affligere, Cic. Sometimes the relative does not agree in gender with the antecedent, but with some synonymous word supplied; as, Scelus qui for scelestus, Ter. Abun-dantia earum rerum, quæ mortales prima putant, scil. negotia, Sall. Vel virtus tua me vel vicinitas, quod ego in aliqua parte amicitiæ puto, facit ut te moneam, scil. negotium, Ter. In omni Africa, qui agebant, for in omnibus Afris, Sallust. Jug. 89. Non dissidentia futuri, quæ imperavisset, for quod, Ib. 100.

OBS. 3. When the relative comes after two words of different persons, it agrees with the first or second person rather than the third; as, Ego sum vir, qui facio, scarcely facit.

OBS. 4. The antecedent is often implied in a possessive adjective; as,

Omnes laudare fortunas meas, qui haberem gnatum tali ingenio præditum, Ter. Sometimes the antecedent must be drawn from the sense of the foregoing words; as, Carne pluit, quem imbrem aves rapuisse feruntur; i. e. pluit imbrem carne, quem imbrem, &c. Liv. Si tempus est ullum jure homines necandi, quæ multa sunt, scil. tempora, Cic.

OBS. 5. The relative is sometimes entirely omitted; as, Urbs antiqua fuit; Tyrii tenuere coloni, scil. quam or eam, Virg. Or if once expressed, is afterwards omitted, so that it must be supplied in a different case; as, Bocchus cum peditibus, quos filius ejus adduxerat, neque in priore pugna adfuerant, Romanos invadunt; for quique in priore pugna non adfuerant, Sall. In English the relative is often omitted, where in Latin it must be expressed; as, The letter I wrote, for the letter

which I wrote; The man I love, to wit, whom. But this omission of the relative is generally improper, particularly in serious discourse.

OBS. 6. The case of the relative sometimes seems to depend on that of the antecedent; as, Cùm aliquid agas eorum, quorum consuésti, for qua consuêsti agere, or quorum aliquid agere consuêsti, Cic. Restitue in quem me accepisti locum, for in locum, in quo, Ter. And. iv. 1. 58. But such examples rarely occur.

OBS. 7. The adjective pronouns, ille, ipse, iste, hic, is, and idem, in their construction, resemb that of the relative qui; as, Liber ejus, His or her book; Vita eorum, Their life, when applied to men; Vita earum, Their life, when applied to women. By the improper use of these pronouns in English, the meaning of sentences is often rendered obscure.

OBS. 8. The interrogative or indefinite adjectives, qualis, quantus, quotus, &c. are also sometimes construed like relatives; as, Facies est, qualem decet esse sororum, Ovid. But these have commonly other adjectives either expressed or understood, which answer to them; as, Tanta est multitudo quantum urbs capere potest: and are often applied to different substantives; as, Quales sunt cives, talis est civitas, Cic.

OBS. 9. The Latin relative often cannot be translated literally into English, on account of the different idioms of the two languages; as, Quod cùm ita esset, When that was so: not, Which when it was so, because then there would be two nominatives to the verb was, which is improper. Sometimes the accusative of the relative in Latin must be rendered by the nominative in English; as, Quem dicunt me esse? Who do they say that I am; not whom. Quem dicunt adventare? Who do they say is coming?

OBS. 10. As the relative is always connected with a different verb from the antecedent, it is usually construed with the subjunctive mode, unless when the meaning of the verb is expressed positively; as, Audire cupio, quæ legeris, I want to hear what you have read, that is, what perhaps or probably you may have read; Audire cupio, quæ legisti, I want to hear what you (actually or in fact) have read.

To the construction of the Relative may be subjoined that of the ANSWER TO A

QUESTION.

The answer is commonly put in the same case with the question; as,

Qui vocare? Geta, sc. vocor. Quid quæris? Librum, sc. quæro. Quotâ horâ venisti? Sexta. Sometimes the construction is varied; as, Cujus est liber? Meus, not mei. Quanti emptus est? Decem assibus. Damnatusne es furti? Imò alio criminę. Often the answer is made by other parts of speech than nouns; as, Quid agitur? Statur, sc. a me, a nobis. Quis fecit? Nescio: aiunt Petrum fecisse. Quomodo vales? Bene, male. Scripsistine? Scripsi, ita, etiam, imò, &c. An vidisti? Non vidi, non, minime, &c. Charea tuam vestem detraxit tibi? Factum. Et ed est indutus? Factum, Ter. Most of the Rules of Syntax may thus be exemplified in the form of questions and answers

The same Case after a Verb as before it.

V. Any Verb may have the same Case after, as before it, when both words refer to the same person or thing; as,

Ego sum discipulus,
Tu vocaris Joannes,
Illa incedit regina

Scio illum haberi sapientem,
Scio vos esse discipulos,

So Redeo iratus, jaceo supplex; Evadent digni, adolescens; nolo esse longus, I am unwilling to prudens, Cic. Non licet mihi esse negligenti, Cic. me esse clementem; cupio non putari mendacem; Cic. Disce esse pater; Hoc est esse patrem? sc. esse, Sallust.

I am a scholar.

You are named John.

She walks as a queen.

I know that he is esteemed wise.
I know that you are scholars.

they will become worthy; Rempublicam defendi be tedious; Malim videri timidus, quàm parùm Natura dedit omnibus esse beatis, Claud. Cupio Vult esse medium, sc. se, He wishes to be neuter, eum, Ter. Id est, dominum, non imperatorem

OBS. 1. This rule implies nothing else but the agreement of an adjective with a substantive, or of one substantive with another; for those words in a sentence which refer to the same object, must always agree together, how much soever disjoined.

OBS. 2. The verbs which most frequently have the same case after them as before them, are, 1. Substantive and neuter verbs; as, Sum, fio, forem, and existo; eo, venio, sto, sedeo, evado, jaceo, fugio, &c.

2. The passive of verbs of naming, judging, &c. as, Dicor, appellor, vocor, nominor, nuncăpor; to which add, videor, existimor, creor, constituor, salutor, designor, &c.

These and other like verbs, admit after them only the nominative, accusative, or dative. When they have before them the genitive, they have after them an accusative; as, Interest omnium esse bonos, scil. se; it is the interest of all to be good. In some cases we can use either the nominative or accusative promiscuously; as, Cupio dici doctus or doctum, sc. me dici; Cupio esse clemens, non putari mendax; vult esse medius.

OBS. 3. When any of the above verbs are placed between two nominatives of different numbers, I

« IndietroContinua »