Most nouns show by their form the number of objects referred to, whether one object or more than one. Of the above words, which indicate one object, and which more than one? The distinction between nouns as to one object or more than one is called number. Number is that form of the word that indicates one or more than one. There are two numbers, the singular and the plural. hat, fox, lady, ox. The plural number indicates more than one. hats, foxes, ladies, oxen. Nouns form their plural number 1. By adding s to the singular number. hat, hats; rug, rugs; horse, horses; table, tables; town, towns. 2. By adding es to the singular number when it would be difficult otherwise to pronounce the word. ax, axes; fox, foxes; church, churches; bush, bushes; gas, gases. 3. By changing y into i and adding es in words ending in y preceded by a consonant. city, cities; lady, ladies; duty, duties; body, bodies. 4. By many irregular ways applying to a few words only: (a) Changing the vowel of the word. foot, feet; mouse, mice; goose, geese. (b) Changing ƒ into v and adding s or es. (c) Adding en to the singular number. (d) By making no change at all. sheep, sheep; deer, deer; trout, trout. (e) Foreign words often keep their own plural form. axis, axes; fungus, fungi; stratum, strata. (f) Letters, figures, and signs add s with an apostrophe. a, a's; 5, 5's. Dot your i's and cross your t's. (g) Some compound words adds to the singular number. cupful, cupfuls; spoonful, spoonfuls. (h) Some compound words change one or both words. mousetrap, mousetraps; man servant, menservants. Exercise 1.— Give the plurals of the following words. When in doubt consult the dictionary. 1 knife bucketful Exercise 2. Pronounce these plurals, being careful to give each letter its full value: In which of these sentences is a person speaking? In which one is a person spoken to? In which one is a person spoken of? In some sentences the words indicate that a person is speaking, in others that he is spoken to, in others that he is spoken of. This use of words is called person. Person is the use of nouns or pronouns to indicate the person speaking, the person spoken to, or the person or thing spoken of. There are three persons. The first person denotes the person speaking. I, Thomas, saw this with my own eyes. The second person denotes the person spoken to. George, it is time for you to go. The third person denotes the person or thing spoken of. Exercise 1. In the following sentences tell the person of the nouns and of the pronouns: 1. Miss Mary, will you please sing? 2. I have a sore throat. 3. I, John Brown, declare this to be my last will and testament. 4. Come hither, my little maid. 5. George the Second was King of England. 6. Joseph, keep quiet. 7. The stag drank water at the rill. 8. Lions are fierce beasts. 9. My son, keep my commandments. 10. What do you want me to do? 11. You, Charles, do not do that. 12. If you love me, then obey me. Exercise 2.-Write five sentences, using pronouns, to illustrate the first person. Write five sentences giving commands, to illustrate the second person. Write five sentences describing some city in Europe, to illustrate the third person. Exercise 3.-Write a short account, in about ten sentences, giving a conversation with a friend about your dog. Point out the person of each noun and pronoun. LESSON 37.-CASE- THE NOMINATIVE CASE We have already learned that nouns are used to denote the subject of the sentence. George studies. Chicago grows rapidly. Nouns are used also to denote possession or close relationship. John's knife is dull. Chicago's fire was terrible. Nouns are used also to denote the object of the predicate in the sentence. I saw John. He visited New York. A noun may be used in three ways: to denote the subject, to denote possession, and to denote the object. This various use of the noun in a sentence according to the relation it bears to other words, as subject, possessor, or object, is called case. Case is the relation that nouns or pronouns bear to other words in a sentence. There are three cases, the nominative case, the possessive case, the objective case. A noun is in the nominative case when it is the subject of a sentence. Exercise 1.- Find the nouns in these sentences that are in the nominative case: 1. The little child learns to write. 2. The cows are in the corn. 3. The wild horse runs through the street. 4. The birds sing in the trees. 5. The roses bloom in the garden. 6. The goldfish is in the pond. 7. The dog drew the cart. 8. Dickens wrote many novels. 9. The Italians make macaroni. 10. Bread is called the staff of life. 11. William Penn founded Philadelphia. |