Note.-Good prose writers make the singular of dies much more fre quently masculine than feminine. The latter gender, ges erally speaking is used only when dies denotes duration or length of time, and in the sense of a fixed or appointed day. Thus we find certa, constituta, praestituta, dicta, finita dies, but also stato die. CHAPTER XXII. IRREGULAR DECLENSION.-INDECLINABLES.-DEFECTIVES. [§ 87.] THE irregularities in the declension of substantives may be comprised under two general heads: A. Indeclinables and defectives; B. Heteroclita and heterogenea. A. Some substantives have a defective declension, inasmuch as they have either no terminations at all to mark the different cases (indeclinables), or want particular cases, or even a whole number (defectives). I. Indeclinables, or words which retain the same form in all cases, are chiefly the names of the letters of the Greek and Latin alphabets, e. g., alpha, beta, gamma, digamma, delta, iota, a, c, v, &c. It is only late and unclassical authors that decline the Greek names in a. Delta, as a name of a country, is likewise indeclinable; but it is found only in the nomin. and accus. Farther, a number of foreign words, such as git, manna, pascha, and a few Greek substantives in i and y, such as gummi and misy, which, however, occurs also as a declinable word (see § 55); and besides the indeclinable gummi there exist other declinable forms also, e. g., haec gummis, hoc gumma, and hoc gumen. Hebrew proper names, which differ in their terminations from Greek and Latin words, are either not declined at all, as Bethleem, Gabriel, Ruth, or they take a Latin termination in the nominative also, e. g., Abrahamus, Jacobus, Josephus, Juditha. David and Daniel are the only names which, without taking any termination in the nominative,* make the genitive Davidis and Danielis. Others, as Joannes, Moses, Judas, Maria, have already acquired, through the Greek, a declinable termination, and are accordingly declined after the first or third declension. Jesus makes the accusat. Jesum, but in the other cases it remains unchanged, Jesu. * [Modern writers of Latin verse, however, give Dāvīdēs as a form fo the nominative. Compare Hodgson (Provost of Eton), Sacred History for Latin Verse, p. 95.]-Am. Ed. Among the genuine Latin words we must notice pondo, which is used only as a plural, and remains unchanged in all its cases, e. g., auri quinque pondo, five pounds of gold. This peculiarity arose from the omission of the word librae, to which was added the superfluous pondo, an ablative in the sense of "in weight" (in which it still often occurs; see § 428); afterward librae was omitted, and pondo retained its place. Semis, half an as, has become an indeclinable adjective (one half) from a declinable substantive, gen. semissis, and is used as such in connexion with other numerals. [§ 88.] II. Defectives in case are those substantives which want one or more cases. There are many words of which the nominative singular cannot be proved to have existed; as, for instance, of the genitives dapis, dicionis, feminis (for which the nominat. femur is used), frugis, internecionis, opis, pollinis, vicis, and of the plurals preces and verbera (for which we use as a nom. sing. plaga or ictus). The genitive neminis, from nemo, occurs very rarely, and its place is supplied by nullius. (See § 676.) The vocative is wanting in a great many words, from their signification. The genitive plural is wanting, that is, does not occur in our authorities, in several monosyllabic words: as, ōs, oris; vas, vadis; glos, pax, and others. (See § 66.) The genit. and dat. sing. of vis are very rare, but the plural vires, virium, &c., is complete. [§ 89.] With regard to words which want several cases, it most frequently happens that only those cases exist which are alike (i. e., especially the nominat. and accusat.), all the others being wanting. This is the case (a) with Greek neuters in es (properly adjectives) and in os in the singular, and with those in e in the plural, e. g., cacoëthes, chaos, epos, melos, cetos (which make the plural mele, cete, as in Greek), and Tempe. Some of these words, however, have a declinable Latin form in us, i, or um, i, viz., chaus, cetus, melus (mascul.), and melum, from which the ablatives chao, melo are derived; and besides (TÒ) Argos, there is a declinable Latin form Argi, Argorum, Argis. (b) With the Latin neuters fas, nefas, nihil, parum (too little), and instar, which was originally a sun * [Consult, on this subject, the following passages of the marians: Charis., p. 22, seq. Id., p. 72, seq. Diom., p. 288. 924. Phoc., p. 1708, seq. Asper, p. 1729. Donat., p. 1749. Cledon., p. 190. Consent., p. 2934.]—Am. Ed. ancient grain Pris., p. 672 Serg., p. 1845 stantive signifying "an image," or "resemblance," and was then used as an adjective in the sense of "like," but only in such connexions as admit of its being explained as a nominative or accusative. Secus, sex, is likewise used only in cases that are alike, especially as an accusative absolute, virile secus, muliebre secus, e. g., canis, muliebre secus; in other phrases, sexus, us, is the ordinary word. (c) With the plural of many monosyllabic words; as, neces, kinds of death; paces, treaties of peace especially neuters; as, aera, brazen images; jura, rights; rura, fields; tura, incense; and others, the plural of which generally occurs only in poetical language; as, farra, corn; mella, honey; fella, bile. To these we must add the poetical plurals flamina, murmura, silentia, colla. The following plurals, grates, munia, munera, likewise occur only in the nom. and accus., and the ablatives gratibus and munibus are rarely used. Metus, which is complete in the singular, and astus, of which the ablat. singular is used, have, in the plural, those cases only which are alike. The following must be remembered separately: fors occurs only in the nom. and abl. singular (forte, by chance); lues, in the nom., acc., and ablat. singular; mane, in the nom., acc., and abl. singular, and is alike in all of them, but it is used also as an adverb. Satias, for satietas, does not occur, in good prose, in any other form. There are several words which are frequently used in the plural (see § 94), but which in the singular have only one or other case, more especially the ablative; e. g., prece, from preces, occurs in prose also; but the ablative singular of ambages, compedes, fauces, obices, and verbera is used only in verse, and not in ordinary prose. [90] Some words occur only in particular combinations, and in a particular case: dicis, with causa and gratia; nauci, in the phrase non nauci facere, or esse; diu noctuque, or die et noctu, old ablatives, for which, however, nocte et interdiu are more commonly used; derisui, despicatui, divisui, ostentui, in combination with duci or esse; infitias, with ire; suppetias, with ferre; pessum and venum, with ire and dare; whence venire and vendere, for which Tacitus, in the same sense, uses veno ponere, exercere; foris and foras (from forae fores); gratis (for gratiis), ingratiis; sponte, with a pronoun; as, mea, tua, sua, or a genitive; in promptu and in procinctu, commonly with esse and stare. We must particularly notice some verbal substantives, which frequently occur in good writers, but rarely in any other form than the ablat. sing. in combination with a genitive, or still more frequently with a pronoun, such as meo, tuo, &c., e. g., concessu and permissu; monitu and admonitu; mandatu, rogatu, oratu; arbitratu, jussu et injussu; accitu, coactu atque eflagitatu meo. [§ 91.] III. Defectives in number are words which have either no plural or singular. 1. Many words, from their signification, can have no plural, and are termed singularia tantum. This is the case, (a) with abstract nouns which have a simple and universal meaning, e. g., justitia, pietas, pudor, temperantia, experientia, infantia, pueritia, adolescentia, juventus, senectus, fames, sitis; (b) with words which denote a substance or mass without division or subdivision; as, aurum, argentum, argilla, sabulum, coenum, limus, sanguis, and panis, inasmuch as we thereby do not understand a single loaf, but the substance of bread in general. Some words of this kind, however, when used in the plural, denote separate objects, consisting of the substance indicated by the name; as, aera, works in bronze; cerae, wax-tablets; ligna, pieces of wood; (c) collective words; as, indoles, the whole natural abilities of a person; plebs and vulgus, victus, supellex, virus. Proper names should strictly have no plural, but cases often occur where a plural is necessary, viz., when persons of the same name or character are spoken of, and it may be remarked in general that in cases like this the person who speaks or writes must decide for himself. It is surprising that there exists no plural of the words vesper (vespera), meridies, ver, justitium, letum, and specimen. [§ 92.] Note 1.-It is, however, remarkable that the plural of abstract nouns is much more common in Latin than in our own language, to denote a repetition of the same thing, or its existence in different objects. Cicero (Pro Leg. Man., 5), for example, says: adventus imperatorum nostrotum in urbes sociorum: in Pis., 22; concursus fiebant undique; effusiones hominum: De Off., ii., 6; interitus exercituum: ibid., ii., 8; exitus erant bellorum aut mites aut necessarii: ibid., ii., 7; reliquorum similes exitus tyrannorum: in * [The passages of the ancient grammarians that have reference to this subject are the following: Varro, L. L., vii., 25; Id., viii., 40. Aul. Gell., xix., 8. Charis., p. 19, 21, seq. Diom., p. 314, seqq. Prisc., p. 662, seq. Phoc., p. 1707, seq. Donat., p. 1748. Consent., p. 2029.]—Am. Ed. Verr., v., 11; exitus conviviorum tales fuerunt. The phrases incurrere in odia hominum and animos addere militibus are of quite common occurrence, and animus is used in the plural whenever the courage or anger of several persons is spoken of, just as we always read terga vertere, to take to flight, when the act is ascribed to many, and never tergum. Animi, however, like spiritus, is used in the plural also, to denote the ferocia animi of one man. Qualities, when attributed to several persons, are frequently (not always) used in the plural; e. g., proceritates arborum, Cic., Cat., 17; odistis hominum novorum industrias, in Verr., iii., 4; ingeniis excellentibus praediti homines, De Fin., v., 24. The plural in this case often denotes different species of the same quality; e. g., sapiens nostras ambitiones levitatesque contemnit, Cic., Tusc., v., 36; saepe excellentiae quaedam in amicitia sunt, Lael., 19; somnus et quietes ceterae, De Off., i., 29. In like manner we find invidiae multitudinis, insaniae, desperationes, iracundiae, fortitudines, turpitudines, mortes, exitia, omnes et metus et aegritudines ad dolorem referuntur, &c. (See, in particular, Cic., De Off., iii., 32.) We must farther notice the frequent use of the plural in words denoting the phenomena of the weather; as, nives, pruinae, grandines, imbres, pluviae; i. e., falls of snow, showers of hail, &c.; and soles, sunbeams. (See Quintil., xi., 3, 27.) All we have said hitherto relates to good prose; the poets go still farther, and use the plural without either of the two reasons mentioned above; e. g., amores, irae, metūs, and timores, flamina, murmura, otia, silentia, partly for the purpose of being more emphatic, and partly on account of the metre, where the singular does not suit it. Note 2.-The names of fruits of gardens and fields, on the other hand, are frequently used in the singular in a collective sense, where we are in the habit of employing the plural; e. g., Pythagorei fuba abstinuerunt (Cic.); fabam, lentem, rapum serere; ciceris catinus. In like manner, nux or uva does not denote a single nut or grape, but the particular kind of fruit; as in Horace, Serm., ii., 2, 121: pensilis uva secundas et nux ornabat mensas. similar way Cicero uses the names of species of animals: villa abundat porco, haedo, agno, gallina, Cat., 17; and Lívy, v., 53, of building materials: tegula publice praebita est. In a [§ 93.] 2. Other words (pluralia tantum) occur only in the plural, and in the singular either not at all, or only in writers who cannot be taken as models. This is the case (a) With the following collective names of personal beings: liberi, gemini, majores, posteri, primores and proceres, superi and inferi, coelites, consentes, penates, lemures, excubiae, operae. When in any of these cases an individual is to be indicated, it can be done only by making it a part of the collective, e. g., one child, unus or una liberorum or ex liberis; manes or dii manes, however, is used in the plural also to denote the departed soul of an individual. (b) A great number of other pluralia tantum denote a complex of things, the constituent parts of which are not conceived separately, or, at least, are not designated by the same word as the whole complex itself. Such words are rendered in English either by plurals or collective words. The most important among them are: (a) Artus, exta, intestina and viscera, foria (orum), tor |