Before we close the account of the verbs, it may afford inftruction to the learners, to be informed, more particularly than they have been, that different nations have made ufe of different contrivances for marking the tenfes and moods of their verbs. The Greeks and Latins distinguish them, as well as the cafes of their nouns, adjectives, and participles, by varying the termination, or otherwise changing the form, of the word; retaining, however, those radical letters, which prove the inflection to be of the fame kindred with its root. The modern tongues, particularly the English, abound in auxiliary words, which vary the. meaning of the noun, or the verb, without requiring any confiderable varieties of inflection. Thus, I do love, I did love, I have loved, I had loved, I shall love, have the fame import with amo, amabam, amavi, amaveram, amabo. It is obvious, that a language, like the Greek and Latin, which can thus comprehend in one word the meaning of two or three, must have some advantages over those which cannot. Perhaps, indeed, it may not be more perfpicuous; but, in the arrangement of words, and confequently in harmony and energy, as well as in concifenefs, it may be much more elegant.

CHAPTER VII.

Of ADVERBS.

AN Adverb is a part of speech joined to a verb, an adjective, and fometimes to another adverb, to exprefs fome quality or circumftance refpecting "He reads well;" "A truly good man;'

it: as,

"He writes very correctly."

"

"Soon,

Some adverbs are compared, viz. fooner, fooneft;"" often, oftener, ofteneft." And thofe ending in ly, are compared by more, and most: as, Wifely, more wifely, most wifely."

Adverbs feem originally to have been contrived to exprefs compendiously in one word, what muft otherwise have required two or more: as, "He acted wifely," for he acted with wifdom; "prudently," for, with prudence; "He did it here," for, he did it in this place; exceedingly," for, to a great degree; "often and feldom," for, many and for few times ; very," for in an eminent degree, &c.

66

66

There are many words in the English language that are fometimes used as adjectives, and sometimes as adverbs : 25, more men than women were there ;" or, "I am more diligent than he." In the former fentence more is evidently an adjective, and in the latter, an adverb. There are others that are fometimes used as fubftantives, and fometimes as adverbs : as, “To-day's leffon is longer than yesterday's ;" here to-day and yesterday are fubftantives, because they are words that make fenfe of themselves, and admit befides of a genitive cafe: but in the phrase, "He came home yesterday, and fets out again to-day," they are adverbs of time; because they answer to the question when. The adverb much is ufed as all three: as, "Where much is given, much is required;" "Much money has been expended;" "It is much better to go than to stay.” In the first of these sentences, much is a substantive; in the fecond, it is an adjective; and in the third, an adverb. In short, nothing but the fenfe can determine what they

are.

Adverbs, though very numerous, may be reduced to certain claffes, the chief of which are those of Number, Order, Place, Time, Quantity, Manner or Quality, Doubt, Affirmation, Negation, Interrogation, and Comparison.

1. Of number: as, "Once, twice, thrice," &c.

2. Of order: as, "Firft, fecondly, thirdly, fourthly, fifthly, laftly, finally," &c.

3. Of place: as, "Here, there, where, elsewhere, anywhere, fomewhere, nowhere, herein, whither, hither, thither, upward, downward, forward, backward, whence, hence, thence, whitherfoever," &c.

4. Of time.

Of time prefent: as, "Now, to-day," &c.

Of time paft: as, "Already, before, lately, yesterday, heretofore, hitherto, long fince, long ago," &c.

Of time to come: as, "To-morrow, not yet, hereafter, henceforth, henceforward, by and by, inftantly, prefently, immediately, ftraightways," &c.

Of time indefinite: as, "Oft, often, oft-times, oftentimes, fometimes, foon, feldom, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, always, when, then, ever, never, again," &c.

5. Of quantity: as, "Much, little, fufficiently, how much, how great, enough, abundantly," &c.

6. Of manner or quality: as, "Wifely, foolishly, justly, unjustly, quickly, flowly," &c. Adverbs of quality are the moft numerous kind; and they are generally formed by adding the termination ly to an adjective or participle, or changing le into ly: as, "Bad, badly; cheerful, cheerfully; able, ably; admirable, admirably."

7. Of doubt: as, Perhaps, peradventure, poffibly, perchance."

8. Of affirmation: as, "Verily, truly, undoubtedly, doubtlefs, certainly, yea, yes, furely, indeed, really," &c. 9. Of negation: as, "Nay, no, not, by no means, not at all, in no wife," &c.

Ic. Of interrogation: as, " How, why, wherefore, whether," &c.

11. Of comparison: as, "More, moft, better, beft, worse, worft, lefs, leaft, very, almoft, little, alike," &c.

as,

Besides the adverbs already mentioned, there are many which are formed by a combination of feveral of the prepofitions with the adverbs of place here, there, and where : "Hereof, thereof, whereof; hereto, thereto, whereto; hereby, thereby, whereby; herewith, therewith, wherewith; herein, therein, wherein; therefore, (i. e. there-for,) wherefore, (i. e. where-for,) hereupon or hereon, thereupon, or thereon, whereupon or whereon," &c. Except therefore, these are seldom used.

L

In fome inftances the prepofition fuffers no change, but becomes an adverb by nothing more than its application : as when we fay," he rides about;"" he was near falling ;" "but do not after lay the blame on me."

There are alfo fome adverbs, which are compofed of nouns and the article a; as, "Afide, athirst, afoot, ahead, afleep, aboard, afhore, abed, aground, afloat," &c.

The words when and where, and all others of the fame nature, fuch as, whence, whither, whenever, wherever, &c. may be properly called adverbial conjunctions, because they participate the nature both of adverbs and conjunctions: of conjunctions, as they conjoin fentences; of adverbs, as they denote the attributes either of time, or of place.

It may be particularly obferved with refpect to the word therefore, that it is an adverb, when, without joining fentences, it only gives the fenfe of, for that reafon. When it gives that fenfe, and also connects, it is a conjunction: as, "He is good, therefore he is happy." The fame obfervation may be extended to the words confequently, accordingly, and the like. When these are subjoined to and, or joined to if, fince, &c. they are adverbs, the connexion being made without their help: when they appear fingle, and unfupported by any other connective, they may be called conjunctions.

The inquifitive scholar may naturally afk, what neceffity there is for adverbs of time, when verbs are provided with tenfes, to fhow that circumstance. The anfwer is, though tenfes may be fufficient to denote the greater distinctions of time, yet, to denote them all by the tenfes would be a perplexity without end. What a variety of forms must be given to the verb, to denote yesterday, to-day, to-morrow, formerly, lately, just now, now, immediately, prefently, foon, hereafter, &c. It was this confideration that made the adverbs of time neceffary, over and above the tenfes.

CHAPTER VIII.

Of PREPOSITIONS.

PREPOSITIONS ferve to connect words with one another, and to fhow the relation between them. They are, for the most part, put before nouns and pronouns : as, "He went from London to York;" "She is above difguife;" "They are inftructed by him."

Of

to

for

The following is a lift of the principal prepofitions:

by with

in

Verbs are often compounded of a verb and a prepofition; as, to uphold, to inveft, to overlook; and this compofition fometimes gives a new fenfe to the verb; as, to understand, to withdraw, to forgive. But in English, the prepofition is more frequently placed after the verb, and feparately from it, like an adverb, in which fituation it is not lefs apt to affect the fenfe of it, and to give it a new meaning; and may still be confidered as belonging to the verb, and as a part of it. As, to caft, is to throw; but to caft up, or to compute, an account, is quite a different thing: thus, to fall on, to bear out, to give over; &c. So that the meaning of the verb, and the propriety of the phrafe, depend on the prepofition fubjoined.

In the compofition of many words, there are certain fyllables employed, which Grammarians have called infeparable prepofitions: as, be, con, mis, &c. in bedeck, conjoin, mistake: but as they are not words of any kind, they cannot properly be called a species of prepofition.