Bac-an, to bake.—Bake;baker;baxter(bakester), a woman who bakes;batch, what is baked.Beat-an, to strike.—Bat, an instrument to strike a ball with;beetle, an instrument to beat clothes with.Ber-an, to carry.—Bearer;burden;barrow, that on which something is borne;bier, that on which a corpse is borne;forbear, to bear forth or off, hence to abstain;overbear, to bear over, to overpower.Brec-an, to break.—Break, an instrument for breaking the speed of a train;breach, a break in a wall;brook, a stream which breaks from the ground.Brinn-an, to burn.—Burn;brownis the burnt colour;brand, a mark made by burning;brandy, a drink made by burning wine;brunt, the burning or hottest part of a fight;brimstone, burning stone (a name for sulphur);brindled, striped with brown;bran new[=brand new].Drag-an, to pull.—Drag;draw, another form of drag;dray, a kind of cart which is drawn along;draught, what is drawn;draft, a cheque drawn on a banker;drain, a ditch for drawing off water;drawl, to keep drawing out one’s words.Far-an, to go.—Far, that which requires much going to reach;farewell, go well!fieldfare, a bird which goes in the fields;thoroughfare, a place where people go through;ford, a place in a river where one can go across on foot;ferry, a place in a river where one can go over in a boat;fare, the money paid for going.Hæl, sound.—Hale;heal, to make hale;health, state of being sound or hale;healthy;healthful;holy, spiritually hale;hail, be hale! or be healthy!whole, in a state of being hale (thewis intrusive);wholesome, what tends to make hale.Lig, lie.—Lie, to lie down;lay, to make to lie;lair, the place where a wild beast lies;law, what lies or is in due order;low, what is (lying) down.Maw-an, to mow.—Mower;math, the grass that is mowed;aftermath, the grass that is mowed after the first crop;mead, a place where grass is mowed;meadow, a small mead.Met-an, to meet.—Mote, a meeting (an old word now found only in wardmote and folkmote);meet.Reaf-ian, to take away.—Reave;bereave;reef, what is taken in in a sail;rifle, to plunder or take away;robber, a person who takes away what does not belong to him.Sceot-an, to throw.—Shoot, to throw out (by means of a gun or otherwise);shut, to throw to (the door);shoot,a branch thrown out by a tree;shot, what is thrown out (by a gun or otherwise);shout, to throw out of the mouth;shuttle, an instrument thrown by a weaver;sheet, what is thrown over (a bed);shutter, what is thrown to, to guard a window.Sit-an, to sit.—Sit;set, to make to sit;beset, to set about;onset, a setting on;overset, to turn over;upset;setter, a kind of dog;settle, a kind of seat;settle, to set or fix;settler;settlement;seat, the place where one sits.Treow-an, believe.—Trow, to believe;true, what should be believed;truth;truthful;truthfully;truism;trust;intrust;trustee;trusty;trustworthy;troth.Wac-an, to wake.—Wake;awake;awaken;wakeful;wakefulness;watch;watchful;watchfulness.
Bac-an, to bake.—Bake;baker;baxter(bakester), a woman who bakes;batch, what is baked.
Beat-an, to strike.—Bat, an instrument to strike a ball with;beetle, an instrument to beat clothes with.
Ber-an, to carry.—Bearer;burden;barrow, that on which something is borne;bier, that on which a corpse is borne;forbear, to bear forth or off, hence to abstain;overbear, to bear over, to overpower.
Brec-an, to break.—Break, an instrument for breaking the speed of a train;breach, a break in a wall;brook, a stream which breaks from the ground.
Brinn-an, to burn.—Burn;brownis the burnt colour;brand, a mark made by burning;brandy, a drink made by burning wine;brunt, the burning or hottest part of a fight;brimstone, burning stone (a name for sulphur);brindled, striped with brown;bran new[=brand new].
Drag-an, to pull.—Drag;draw, another form of drag;dray, a kind of cart which is drawn along;draught, what is drawn;draft, a cheque drawn on a banker;drain, a ditch for drawing off water;drawl, to keep drawing out one’s words.
Far-an, to go.—Far, that which requires much going to reach;farewell, go well!fieldfare, a bird which goes in the fields;thoroughfare, a place where people go through;ford, a place in a river where one can go across on foot;ferry, a place in a river where one can go over in a boat;fare, the money paid for going.
Hæl, sound.—Hale;heal, to make hale;health, state of being sound or hale;healthy;healthful;holy, spiritually hale;hail, be hale! or be healthy!whole, in a state of being hale (thewis intrusive);wholesome, what tends to make hale.
Lig, lie.—Lie, to lie down;lay, to make to lie;lair, the place where a wild beast lies;law, what lies or is in due order;low, what is (lying) down.
Maw-an, to mow.—Mower;math, the grass that is mowed;aftermath, the grass that is mowed after the first crop;mead, a place where grass is mowed;meadow, a small mead.
Met-an, to meet.—Mote, a meeting (an old word now found only in wardmote and folkmote);meet.
Reaf-ian, to take away.—Reave;bereave;reef, what is taken in in a sail;rifle, to plunder or take away;robber, a person who takes away what does not belong to him.
Sceot-an, to throw.—Shoot, to throw out (by means of a gun or otherwise);shut, to throw to (the door);shoot,a branch thrown out by a tree;shot, what is thrown out (by a gun or otherwise);shout, to throw out of the mouth;shuttle, an instrument thrown by a weaver;sheet, what is thrown over (a bed);shutter, what is thrown to, to guard a window.
Sit-an, to sit.—Sit;set, to make to sit;beset, to set about;onset, a setting on;overset, to turn over;upset;setter, a kind of dog;settle, a kind of seat;settle, to set or fix;settler;settlement;seat, the place where one sits.
Treow-an, believe.—Trow, to believe;true, what should be believed;truth;truthful;truthfully;truism;trust;intrust;trustee;trusty;trustworthy;troth.
Wac-an, to wake.—Wake;awake;awaken;wakeful;wakefulness;watch;watchful;watchfulness.
A(a broken-down form of the A.S. prepositionon), at, to, on, in, etc.; astern, abed, aboard, afield, afoot, ashore, alive, aweary.After; afternoon, afterthought, aftermath, aftercrop.At; atone (to bring together into one); ado (= at-do); twit (= at-wit).Be, used both with nouns and with verbs—behalf, behoof, behest, bequest; betake, begin, become, bespatter, bedim, besprinkle, behead.Down; downfall, downstroke, downcast.For, not; forbid, forsake (not to seek), forget, forgo (wrongly spelled forego); or utterly; as, forlorn, fordone.Fore, before; foretell, forefather, foresee, forebode, forecast, forenoon.Gain, against; gainsay, gainstay (gainstand).In,im,en,em; income, inlet, insight, inlay, inborn, inbred, into, ingraft, inlay, infold, imbed, endear, enthral, engrave, embower.Mis, wrong; mislead, mistrust, misdeed, mishap, mistake.Mid, in the middle of; midmost, midnight, midsummer, midday.Off, from; offshoot, offset, offspring, offal (= off-fall), offhand.Out; outset, outstrip, outvie, outrun, outdo.Over; overwise, overfed, overmuch, overcoat, overhand, overseer, oversight.Through,thorough; thoroughfare, throughout, thoroughbred, thoroughgoing.To, this; to-day, to-night, to-morrow.Un, (1) not; unclean, unwise, untrue, unbelief, unrest: or (2) back; undo, untie, unlock, unfold, unbind, unloose.Under; undergrowth, underbred, underhand, undersell, underwood.Up; uproar, upland, upstart, upset, upbear, upbraid, upright.Wel,well; welfare, welcome, well-born, well-bred, well-trained.With, against; withstand, withdraw (drawing-room = withdrawing-room), withhold.
A(a broken-down form of the A.S. prepositionon), at, to, on, in, etc.; astern, abed, aboard, afield, afoot, ashore, alive, aweary.
After; afternoon, afterthought, aftermath, aftercrop.
At; atone (to bring together into one); ado (= at-do); twit (= at-wit).
Be, used both with nouns and with verbs—behalf, behoof, behest, bequest; betake, begin, become, bespatter, bedim, besprinkle, behead.
Down; downfall, downstroke, downcast.
For, not; forbid, forsake (not to seek), forget, forgo (wrongly spelled forego); or utterly; as, forlorn, fordone.
Fore, before; foretell, forefather, foresee, forebode, forecast, forenoon.
Gain, against; gainsay, gainstay (gainstand).
In,im,en,em; income, inlet, insight, inlay, inborn, inbred, into, ingraft, inlay, infold, imbed, endear, enthral, engrave, embower.
Mis, wrong; mislead, mistrust, misdeed, mishap, mistake.
Mid, in the middle of; midmost, midnight, midsummer, midday.
Off, from; offshoot, offset, offspring, offal (= off-fall), offhand.
Out; outset, outstrip, outvie, outrun, outdo.
Over; overwise, overfed, overmuch, overcoat, overhand, overseer, oversight.
Through,thorough; thoroughfare, throughout, thoroughbred, thoroughgoing.
To, this; to-day, to-night, to-morrow.
Un, (1) not; unclean, unwise, untrue, unbelief, unrest: or (2) back; undo, untie, unlock, unfold, unbind, unloose.
Under; undergrowth, underbred, underhand, undersell, underwood.
Up; uproar, upland, upstart, upset, upbear, upbraid, upright.
Wel,well; welfare, welcome, well-born, well-bred, well-trained.
With, against; withstand, withdraw (drawing-room = withdrawing-room), withhold.
Ab(a,abs), from or away; averse, avert, aversion, abdicate, abstract, abstain, abjure, abate, abound, abuse, abduction.Ad(ac,af,ag,al,am,an,ap,ar,as,at,a), to: adore, advise, accord, annex, accuse, accede, allude, allusion, announce, appear, assent, attend, aspire, affirm, affix, aggrieve, annul, ammunition, apparent, arrive, assume, assault, assumption, attend, attentive, attention, assimilate, attain, ascribe, avow.Am(amb), round; ambient, amputate, ambition, ambiguous.Ante(anti), before; antedate, antenuptial, antenatal, antechamber, antediluvian, anticipate.Circum(circu), round; circumlocution, circumnavigate, circuit, circumvent, circuitous, circulate, circumference.Con(col,com,cor,co), together with; consonant, connect, contend, conduct, compact, compound, commend, collision, collect, correct, corrupt, co-heir, coerce.Contra(contro,counter), against; contradict, contravene, controversy, controvert, contraband, counterfeit.De, down or from; denote, describe, depart, descent, devise, demure.Dis(dif,di); disjoin, difficult, diffuse, divide, differ, dilute, dissent.Ex(ef,e), out of; extort, exhume, efface, educe, extrude, extol, effect, education.Extra, beyond; extraordinary, extravagant, extraneous.In(il,im,ir,em,en), into; invade, incite, induce, illusion, illude, improve, impulse, impel, irruption, embrace, endure, encourage, embroil, irradiate, innate.In(ig,il,im,ir), not; insecure, ignoble, illiterate, inconvenient, incurable, incapable, incapacitate, immortal, irregular, improper, illegitimate, irrational, innocent, infant.Inter(intel,enter), between; intercourse, intelligent, interfere, interdict, enterprise, entertain, interrupt.Intro, within; introduce.Ob(oc,of,op,os), against; oblige, obtain, object, occur, offend, oppose, occult, offer, ostentation.Pene, almost; as, peninsula.Per(pel), through; perform, permit, pellucid, pertain.Post, after; postpone, posthumous.Præorpre, before; prelection, preface, prevent, precede, premature, predict.Præterorpreter, beyond; preternatural, preterite.Pro(por,pur,pol), forth, on or before; proceed, pollution, portend, purvey, portrait, purloin, purchase, pronoun, purpose.Re(red), back; refute, result, redolent, redound, reduce, redeem.Retro, backwards; retrograde, retrospect.Se(sed), aside or apart; select, seclude, secede, seduce, sedition.Sub(suc,suf,sug,sup,sur,sus,su), under, up from below; subject, suspect, succeed, suffer, suggest, suppose, suspend, suspect, succinct, suppress, surrogate, susceptible, subdue, suffuse, subtract, succour, supplant.Subter, beneath; subterfuge.Super(sur), over; superstructure, surplus, survive, superscribe, surfeit, surcharge, supernatural, surname, supercilious.Trans(tra,tres); across; transmarine, translate, tradition, trespass, traduce.Ultra, beyond; ultramontane, ultramarine.Vice, instead of; viceroy, viceregal, viscount.
Ab(a,abs), from or away; averse, avert, aversion, abdicate, abstract, abstain, abjure, abate, abound, abuse, abduction.
Ad(ac,af,ag,al,am,an,ap,ar,as,at,a), to: adore, advise, accord, annex, accuse, accede, allude, allusion, announce, appear, assent, attend, aspire, affirm, affix, aggrieve, annul, ammunition, apparent, arrive, assume, assault, assumption, attend, attentive, attention, assimilate, attain, ascribe, avow.
Am(amb), round; ambient, amputate, ambition, ambiguous.
Ante(anti), before; antedate, antenuptial, antenatal, antechamber, antediluvian, anticipate.
Circum(circu), round; circumlocution, circumnavigate, circuit, circumvent, circuitous, circulate, circumference.
Con(col,com,cor,co), together with; consonant, connect, contend, conduct, compact, compound, commend, collision, collect, correct, corrupt, co-heir, coerce.
Contra(contro,counter), against; contradict, contravene, controversy, controvert, contraband, counterfeit.
De, down or from; denote, describe, depart, descent, devise, demure.
Dis(dif,di); disjoin, difficult, diffuse, divide, differ, dilute, dissent.
Ex(ef,e), out of; extort, exhume, efface, educe, extrude, extol, effect, education.
Extra, beyond; extraordinary, extravagant, extraneous.
In(il,im,ir,em,en), into; invade, incite, induce, illusion, illude, improve, impulse, impel, irruption, embrace, endure, encourage, embroil, irradiate, innate.
In(ig,il,im,ir), not; insecure, ignoble, illiterate, inconvenient, incurable, incapable, incapacitate, immortal, irregular, improper, illegitimate, irrational, innocent, infant.
Inter(intel,enter), between; intercourse, intelligent, interfere, interdict, enterprise, entertain, interrupt.
Intro, within; introduce.
Ob(oc,of,op,os), against; oblige, obtain, object, occur, offend, oppose, occult, offer, ostentation.
Pene, almost; as, peninsula.
Per(pel), through; perform, permit, pellucid, pertain.
Post, after; postpone, posthumous.
Præorpre, before; prelection, preface, prevent, precede, premature, predict.
Præterorpreter, beyond; preternatural, preterite.
Pro(por,pur,pol), forth, on or before; proceed, pollution, portend, purvey, portrait, purloin, purchase, pronoun, purpose.
Re(red), back; refute, result, redolent, redound, reduce, redeem.
Retro, backwards; retrograde, retrospect.
Se(sed), aside or apart; select, seclude, secede, seduce, sedition.
Sub(suc,suf,sug,sup,sur,sus,su), under, up from below; subject, suspect, succeed, suffer, suggest, suppose, suspend, suspect, succinct, suppress, surrogate, susceptible, subdue, suffuse, subtract, succour, supplant.
Subter, beneath; subterfuge.
Super(sur), over; superstructure, surplus, survive, superscribe, surfeit, surcharge, supernatural, surname, supercilious.
Trans(tra,tres); across; transmarine, translate, tradition, trespass, traduce.
Ultra, beyond; ultramontane, ultramarine.
Vice, instead of; viceroy, viceregal, viscount.
Aoran, not; anarchy, anomaly, anonymous, apteryx (wingless), atheist.Amphi, on both sides, round; amphibious, amphitheatre.Ana, up; anatomy, analysis, anabasis, analyse.Anti(ant), against; antithesis, antipathy, antarctic, antitype, antidote.Apo(ap,aph), from; apogee, apology, apostrophe, aphelion, aphorism.Cata, down; catarrh, catalepsy, catastrophe, catechism, cathartic, cathedral, catalogue.Di(dis), two; diphthong, dissyllable, dilemma, diploma.Dia, through; diameter, diagonal, diaphonous, diabolic, diagnosis, diastole, diaphragm.En(el,em), in; ellipse, emblem, energy, enthrone, empyrean, emphasis, emporium.Endo, within; endogenous.Epi(ep), upon; epilogue, epitaph, epiphany, epistle.Exo, without; exogenous, exotic.Hyper, over or above; hyperbola, hyperbole, hyperbolical, hypercritical, hyperborean.Hypo(hyph), under; hypotenuse, hypothesis, hypocrite, hyphen.Meta(met,meth) signifies after, change; metathesis, metonomy, method, metaphor.Para(par), beside; parabola, paraphrase, parhelion, parody, parable.Peri, round; perimeter, peristyle, perigee, periphery, period.Pro, before; prologue, problem, prophet, program.Pros, towards; prosody, proselyte.Syn(sy,syl,sym), together with; syndic, syntax, symbol, syllogism, syllable, system, systole, synchronous, symptom, sympathy.
Aoran, not; anarchy, anomaly, anonymous, apteryx (wingless), atheist.
Amphi, on both sides, round; amphibious, amphitheatre.
Ana, up; anatomy, analysis, anabasis, analyse.
Anti(ant), against; antithesis, antipathy, antarctic, antitype, antidote.
Apo(ap,aph), from; apogee, apology, apostrophe, aphelion, aphorism.
Cata, down; catarrh, catalepsy, catastrophe, catechism, cathartic, cathedral, catalogue.
Di(dis), two; diphthong, dissyllable, dilemma, diploma.
Dia, through; diameter, diagonal, diaphonous, diabolic, diagnosis, diastole, diaphragm.
En(el,em), in; ellipse, emblem, energy, enthrone, empyrean, emphasis, emporium.
Endo, within; endogenous.
Epi(ep), upon; epilogue, epitaph, epiphany, epistle.
Exo, without; exogenous, exotic.
Hyper, over or above; hyperbola, hyperbole, hyperbolical, hypercritical, hyperborean.
Hypo(hyph), under; hypotenuse, hypothesis, hypocrite, hyphen.
Meta(met,meth) signifies after, change; metathesis, metonomy, method, metaphor.
Para(par), beside; parabola, paraphrase, parhelion, parody, parable.
Peri, round; perimeter, peristyle, perigee, periphery, period.
Pro, before; prologue, problem, prophet, program.
Pros, towards; prosody, proselyte.
Syn(sy,syl,sym), together with; syndic, syntax, symbol, syllogism, syllable, system, systole, synchronous, symptom, sympathy.
1.Denoting a person or the doer of an action:-eror-ar; singer, baker, beggar, liar, lawyer, bowyer (a bow-maker), sawyer, sailor, speaker, miller, (fletcher = flechier, an arrow-maker).-nd(old present participial ending); friend (= a loving person), fiend (= a hating person), errand, wind.-ster(originally afemaleagent); Spinster, songster, maltster, huckster, baxter [= bakester], (now a term of contempt); youngster, gamester, punster.-ter,-ther,-der; daughter, father, spider (that is, spinder), mother, brother, foster (= foodster).2.Denoting an instrument:-deror-er; ladder, rudder, bladder (fromblow), feather, weather, rudder, murder, stair, finger (fromfangen, to seize).-elor-le; shovel, girdle, shuttle, settle (a small seat), thimble.3.Forming abstract nouns:-dom; kingdom, earldom, freedom, thraldom, wisdom, martyrdom, Christendom.-hood, or-head; manhood, boyhood, childhood, priesthood, Godhead, hardihood, neighbourhood, wifehood.-ing; hunting, blessing, standing, reading, clothing.-ness; witness (= a person whowitsor knows), wilderness, darkness, goodness, redness, weakness, hardness.-red; hatred, kindred.-ship,-scape; friendship, lordship, worship (= worthship), hardship, fellowship, landscape (in Milton,landskip: compareskipperforshipper).-t,-th,-st,-d; weight, height, sleight (fromsly), gift, rift (fromrive), theft, drought (fromdry), frost, flight, warmth, health, width, death, birth, sloth (fromslow), trust (fromtrow, to believe), flood (fromflow), seed (fromsow).4.Diminutives:-elor-le; thimble (fromthumb), riddle (fromread).-en; maiden, kitten, chicken.-ing; farthing, tithing (fromtithe= tenth), riding (fromthrid= third).-kin; lambkin, mannikin, pipkin.-ling(=l+ing); darling (fromdear), duckling, suckling, hireling, gosling, fatling, firstling, nestling, underling, starveling, suckling.-ock; bullock, hillock, paddock.-y,-ie; lassie, Annie, Charlie, baby, Tommy, doggie.Adjective Suffixes.-dor-ed(originally a perfect participle-ending); hard, cold, loud: also added to nouns, as gifted, wretched, ragged, long-eared, feathered, landed.-elor-le; fickle, brittle, little, idle, mickle (frommuch).-er; lower, higher, brighter, sooner.-er; bitter, clever.-ern, denoting the region of the globe; northern, eastern, southern, western.-est; lowest, highest, brightest, soonest.-fold; manifold, twofold, threefold, hundredfold, etc.-ful; scornful, sinful, wilful, truthful, tearful, needful, awful, dreadful, sorrowful.-ish,-sh, or-ch, denotes partaking of the nature of; childish, foolish, slavish, swinish, churlish, waspish, whitish, goodish, brutish, girlish, boyish.-lessdenotes destitute of; worthless, fearless, heedless, hopeless, tearless, sinless, godless, lawless, toothless.-like,-ly, denotes like; warlike, childlike, womanly, manly, heavenly, godly, ghastly, likely.-nor-en(also a perfect participle-ending); drunken, shaken, broken, molten, shorn, torn. It also denotes the material of which a thing is made, as golden, linen, wooden, silvern, flaxen, hempen, leathern.-somedenotes the possession of a quality; wholesome, blithesome, gladsome, winsome, lissom (fromlithe), buxom (that is,buhsum, frombugan, to bend), quarrelsome, tiresome.-t(liked), probably perfect participial ending; short (fromsceran, to shear), blunt, tight, slight.-warddenotes direction; homeward, heavenward, seaward, northward, awkward (fromawk, contrary), toward, froward (fromfrom).-yor-eydenotes the possession of a quality; bloody, thirsty, guilty, woody, mighty, healthy, greedy, moody, sundry (fromsunder), sticky, sorry (fromsore), hairy, bushy, stony, clayey.Verb Suffixes.-elor-legives a frequentative meaning to the verb; waddle (fromwade), startle, sparkle, dazzle (fromdaze), dribble (fromdrip), swaddle (fromswathe), dapple (fromdip), crawl, kneel (fromknee), struggle, mingle, hurtle.-endenotes making or doing; fatten, broaden, soften, open (fromup), lighten, sadden, gladden, sweeten, frighten, lengthen.-er, also frequentative; glimmer, stagger, patter, flitter, flutter, wander, batter, sputter, stutter.-k, also frequentative; stalk (fromsteal), hark (fromhear), walk.Adverb Suffixes.-eredenotes place in which; here, there, where.-es,-se,-ce,-s, which are old (possessive) genitive terminations; sometimes, besides, unawares, else, twice (= twiës), thrice, hence, thence, whence, needs, outwards.-lydenotes manner; sweetly, sadly, cleanly.-therdenotes direction towards; hither, thither, whither.-ward,-wards, denote direction; homeward, homewards, heavenward, heavenwards, hitherward, inwards.-wise,-ways, denote manner or fashion; otherwise, anywise, nowise, straightway, alway, always, sideways, lengthways.
1.Denoting a person or the doer of an action:
-eror-ar; singer, baker, beggar, liar, lawyer, bowyer (a bow-maker), sawyer, sailor, speaker, miller, (fletcher = flechier, an arrow-maker).
-nd(old present participial ending); friend (= a loving person), fiend (= a hating person), errand, wind.
-ster(originally afemaleagent); Spinster, songster, maltster, huckster, baxter [= bakester], (now a term of contempt); youngster, gamester, punster.
-ter,-ther,-der; daughter, father, spider (that is, spinder), mother, brother, foster (= foodster).
2.Denoting an instrument:
-deror-er; ladder, rudder, bladder (fromblow), feather, weather, rudder, murder, stair, finger (fromfangen, to seize).
-elor-le; shovel, girdle, shuttle, settle (a small seat), thimble.
3.Forming abstract nouns:
-dom; kingdom, earldom, freedom, thraldom, wisdom, martyrdom, Christendom.
-hood, or-head; manhood, boyhood, childhood, priesthood, Godhead, hardihood, neighbourhood, wifehood.
-ing; hunting, blessing, standing, reading, clothing.
-ness; witness (= a person whowitsor knows), wilderness, darkness, goodness, redness, weakness, hardness.
-red; hatred, kindred.
-ship,-scape; friendship, lordship, worship (= worthship), hardship, fellowship, landscape (in Milton,landskip: compareskipperforshipper).
-t,-th,-st,-d; weight, height, sleight (fromsly), gift, rift (fromrive), theft, drought (fromdry), frost, flight, warmth, health, width, death, birth, sloth (fromslow), trust (fromtrow, to believe), flood (fromflow), seed (fromsow).
4.Diminutives:
-elor-le; thimble (fromthumb), riddle (fromread).
-en; maiden, kitten, chicken.
-ing; farthing, tithing (fromtithe= tenth), riding (fromthrid= third).
-kin; lambkin, mannikin, pipkin.
-ling(=l+ing); darling (fromdear), duckling, suckling, hireling, gosling, fatling, firstling, nestling, underling, starveling, suckling.
-ock; bullock, hillock, paddock.
-y,-ie; lassie, Annie, Charlie, baby, Tommy, doggie.
Adjective Suffixes.
-dor-ed(originally a perfect participle-ending); hard, cold, loud: also added to nouns, as gifted, wretched, ragged, long-eared, feathered, landed.
-elor-le; fickle, brittle, little, idle, mickle (frommuch).
-er; lower, higher, brighter, sooner.
-er; bitter, clever.
-ern, denoting the region of the globe; northern, eastern, southern, western.
-est; lowest, highest, brightest, soonest.
-fold; manifold, twofold, threefold, hundredfold, etc.
-ful; scornful, sinful, wilful, truthful, tearful, needful, awful, dreadful, sorrowful.
-ish,-sh, or-ch, denotes partaking of the nature of; childish, foolish, slavish, swinish, churlish, waspish, whitish, goodish, brutish, girlish, boyish.
-lessdenotes destitute of; worthless, fearless, heedless, hopeless, tearless, sinless, godless, lawless, toothless.
-like,-ly, denotes like; warlike, childlike, womanly, manly, heavenly, godly, ghastly, likely.
-nor-en(also a perfect participle-ending); drunken, shaken, broken, molten, shorn, torn. It also denotes the material of which a thing is made, as golden, linen, wooden, silvern, flaxen, hempen, leathern.
-somedenotes the possession of a quality; wholesome, blithesome, gladsome, winsome, lissom (fromlithe), buxom (that is,buhsum, frombugan, to bend), quarrelsome, tiresome.
-t(liked), probably perfect participial ending; short (fromsceran, to shear), blunt, tight, slight.
-warddenotes direction; homeward, heavenward, seaward, northward, awkward (fromawk, contrary), toward, froward (fromfrom).
-yor-eydenotes the possession of a quality; bloody, thirsty, guilty, woody, mighty, healthy, greedy, moody, sundry (fromsunder), sticky, sorry (fromsore), hairy, bushy, stony, clayey.
-elor-legives a frequentative meaning to the verb; waddle (fromwade), startle, sparkle, dazzle (fromdaze), dribble (fromdrip), swaddle (fromswathe), dapple (fromdip), crawl, kneel (fromknee), struggle, mingle, hurtle.
-endenotes making or doing; fatten, broaden, soften, open (fromup), lighten, sadden, gladden, sweeten, frighten, lengthen.
-er, also frequentative; glimmer, stagger, patter, flitter, flutter, wander, batter, sputter, stutter.
-k, also frequentative; stalk (fromsteal), hark (fromhear), walk.
-eredenotes place in which; here, there, where.
-es,-se,-ce,-s, which are old (possessive) genitive terminations; sometimes, besides, unawares, else, twice (= twiës), thrice, hence, thence, whence, needs, outwards.
-lydenotes manner; sweetly, sadly, cleanly.
-therdenotes direction towards; hither, thither, whither.
-ward,-wards, denote direction; homeward, homewards, heavenward, heavenwards, hitherward, inwards.
-wise,-ways, denote manner or fashion; otherwise, anywise, nowise, straightway, alway, always, sideways, lengthways.
1.Those denoting persons or the doer of an action:-an,-ain; artisan, grammarian, villain.-antor-ent; agent, student, assistant, attendant, recreant, tenant, miscreant.-ate,-ee,-ey,-y; legate, magistrate, advocate, curate, nominee, trustee, legatee, committee, attorney, covey, ally, deputy, jury.-essdenotes a fem. agent; governess, traitress, empress, duchess.-ive,-iff; captive, fugitive, caitiff, plaintiff.-tor,-sor,-or,-our,-er,-eer,-ier,-ar,-ary; doctor, successor, chancellor, emperor, actor, Saviour, founder, enchanter, governor, preacher, juror, author, monitor, victor, auditor, sponsor, engineer, auctioneer, grenadier, brigadier, registrar, usher, archer, farrier, vicar, premier, lapidary.-trix, female agent; executrix.2.Those forming Abstract Nouns:-age; age, homage, savage, marriage, voyage, tillage, courage, personage, breakage, salvage. (Tonnage, bondage, shrinkage are hybrids.)-ance,-ancy,-ence,-ency; distance, constancy, infancy, consistence, resistance, decency, consistency, persistence, conveyance, cadence, chance (a form of cadence).-ice,-ise; avarice, service, merchandise, justice, exercise.-ion,-tion,-sion,-som,-son, originally denoted the action of a verb; action, potion, opinion, poison, venison, malison, fusion, reason, tension, lection, ransom, season, position, nation, occasion.-or,-our; labour, honour, ardour, savour, clamour, amour.-tude; servitude, latitude, fortitude, altitude, longitude, magnitude, custom (fromconsuetudo).-ty,-ity; cruelty, charity, bounty, poverty, fealty, city, vanity.-ure; juncture, censure, culture, measure, cincture, picture, inclosure.-y,-cy,-ce; family, copy, memory, story, victory, misery, aristocracy, fancy, grace.3.Diminutives:-el,-le; damsel, mongrel.-et,-let; pocket, rivulet.-ette; coquette, rosette.-icle,-cule; article, animalcule.-ule; globule, granule.Adjective Suffixes.-able,-ible,-ble; culpable, probable, flexible, edible, capable, soluble, feeble, amiable.-aciousdenotes tendency, generally excessive; loquacious, veracious, vivacious, tenacious, voracious.-al,-ar; comical, regal, legal, general, regular, singular, loyal, royal, equal, secular.-an,-ane,-ain,-en,-on; human, urban, pagan, humane, mundane, certain, mizzen (frommedius). Surgeon and sexton have become nouns.-aneous,-ain,-aign,-eign,-ange; cutaneous, mountain, champaign, foreign, strange.-ant,-ent; volant, fluent, patent, innocent.-ary,-arian,-arious; stationary, contrary, necessary, gregarious, agrarian.-ate,-ete,-eet,-ite,-ute,-te; fortunate, deliberate, concrete, effete, discreet, erudite, minute, chaste.-estrial,-estrian; terrestrial, equestrian.-ic; civic, classic, barbaric, unique.-id; fervid, morbid, acid, tepid.-ile,-il,-eel,-le; servile, senile, fragile, civil, frail, genteel, gentle, able.-inedenotes belonging to; feminine, divine, feline, lacustrine, canine, equine, saline.-ive, inclined to; pensive, massive, captive, plaintive, restive, native, fugitive, active.-ous,-ose, denote full of; famous, ingenuous, glorious, copious, assiduous, querulous, anxious, verbose, grandiose, jocose, dangerous.-ory; illusory, amatory, admonitory.-und; jocund, moribund, floribund, rotund.Verb Suffixes.-ate; advocate, complicate, anticipate, supplicate, eradicate.-eer; domineer, career, volunteer.-escedenotes the beginning of an action; effervesce, coalesce.-fydenotes to make (fromfacio), magnify, terrify, qualify, signify.-ish; nourish, perish, cherish, finish, flourish, banish, punish.-ite,-ete,-t; expedite, delete, perfect, conduct, reflect, connect.
1.Those denoting persons or the doer of an action:
-an,-ain; artisan, grammarian, villain.
-antor-ent; agent, student, assistant, attendant, recreant, tenant, miscreant.
-ate,-ee,-ey,-y; legate, magistrate, advocate, curate, nominee, trustee, legatee, committee, attorney, covey, ally, deputy, jury.
-essdenotes a fem. agent; governess, traitress, empress, duchess.
-ive,-iff; captive, fugitive, caitiff, plaintiff.
-tor,-sor,-or,-our,-er,-eer,-ier,-ar,-ary; doctor, successor, chancellor, emperor, actor, Saviour, founder, enchanter, governor, preacher, juror, author, monitor, victor, auditor, sponsor, engineer, auctioneer, grenadier, brigadier, registrar, usher, archer, farrier, vicar, premier, lapidary.
-trix, female agent; executrix.
2.Those forming Abstract Nouns:
-age; age, homage, savage, marriage, voyage, tillage, courage, personage, breakage, salvage. (Tonnage, bondage, shrinkage are hybrids.)
-ance,-ancy,-ence,-ency; distance, constancy, infancy, consistence, resistance, decency, consistency, persistence, conveyance, cadence, chance (a form of cadence).
-ice,-ise; avarice, service, merchandise, justice, exercise.
-ion,-tion,-sion,-som,-son, originally denoted the action of a verb; action, potion, opinion, poison, venison, malison, fusion, reason, tension, lection, ransom, season, position, nation, occasion.
-or,-our; labour, honour, ardour, savour, clamour, amour.
-tude; servitude, latitude, fortitude, altitude, longitude, magnitude, custom (fromconsuetudo).
-ty,-ity; cruelty, charity, bounty, poverty, fealty, city, vanity.
-ure; juncture, censure, culture, measure, cincture, picture, inclosure.
-y,-cy,-ce; family, copy, memory, story, victory, misery, aristocracy, fancy, grace.
3.Diminutives:
-el,-le; damsel, mongrel.
-et,-let; pocket, rivulet.
-ette; coquette, rosette.
-icle,-cule; article, animalcule.
-ule; globule, granule.
-able,-ible,-ble; culpable, probable, flexible, edible, capable, soluble, feeble, amiable.
-aciousdenotes tendency, generally excessive; loquacious, veracious, vivacious, tenacious, voracious.
-al,-ar; comical, regal, legal, general, regular, singular, loyal, royal, equal, secular.
-an,-ane,-ain,-en,-on; human, urban, pagan, humane, mundane, certain, mizzen (frommedius). Surgeon and sexton have become nouns.
-aneous,-ain,-aign,-eign,-ange; cutaneous, mountain, champaign, foreign, strange.
-ant,-ent; volant, fluent, patent, innocent.
-ary,-arian,-arious; stationary, contrary, necessary, gregarious, agrarian.
-ate,-ete,-eet,-ite,-ute,-te; fortunate, deliberate, concrete, effete, discreet, erudite, minute, chaste.
-estrial,-estrian; terrestrial, equestrian.
-ic; civic, classic, barbaric, unique.
-id; fervid, morbid, acid, tepid.
-ile,-il,-eel,-le; servile, senile, fragile, civil, frail, genteel, gentle, able.
-inedenotes belonging to; feminine, divine, feline, lacustrine, canine, equine, saline.
-ive, inclined to; pensive, massive, captive, plaintive, restive, native, fugitive, active.
-ous,-ose, denote full of; famous, ingenuous, glorious, copious, assiduous, querulous, anxious, verbose, grandiose, jocose, dangerous.
-ory; illusory, amatory, admonitory.
-und; jocund, moribund, floribund, rotund.
-ate; advocate, complicate, anticipate, supplicate, eradicate.
-eer; domineer, career, volunteer.
-escedenotes the beginning of an action; effervesce, coalesce.
-fydenotes to make (fromfacio), magnify, terrify, qualify, signify.
-ish; nourish, perish, cherish, finish, flourish, banish, punish.
-ite,-ete,-t; expedite, delete, perfect, conduct, reflect, connect.
-et,-t,-ete,-ate, denote the agent; poet, prophet, athlete, comet, planet, apostate, æsthete(?), patriot.-iskhas diminutive signification; asterisk, obelisk.-ismdenotes the result of an action; deism, fatalism, egotism, criticism, aneurism.-istdenotes the agent; baptist, sophist, evangelist.-ma,-em,-me,-m, denote the result of an action; diorama, drama, dogma, system, scheme, theme, diadem, phlegm, enema.-sis,-sy,-se, denote action; crisis, poesy, phase, genesis, emphasis, paralysis, hypocrisy, ellipse, phrensy.-ter,-tre, denote the instrument; metre, centre.Verb Suffixes.-isesignifies to do; criticise, baptise, eulogise.
-et,-t,-ete,-ate, denote the agent; poet, prophet, athlete, comet, planet, apostate, æsthete(?), patriot.
-iskhas diminutive signification; asterisk, obelisk.
-ismdenotes the result of an action; deism, fatalism, egotism, criticism, aneurism.
-istdenotes the agent; baptist, sophist, evangelist.
-ma,-em,-me,-m, denote the result of an action; diorama, drama, dogma, system, scheme, theme, diadem, phlegm, enema.
-sis,-sy,-se, denote action; crisis, poesy, phase, genesis, emphasis, paralysis, hypocrisy, ellipse, phrensy.
-ter,-tre, denote the instrument; metre, centre.
Verb Suffixes.
-isesignifies to do; criticise, baptise, eulogise.
(WITH ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE EARLY LANGUAGE).
1.THE BEOWULF.—TheBeowulfis a poem which recounts the life and death of a hero of that name, who slays a monster calledGrendel. It was a poetic legend brought from the Continent by our Teutonic ancestors. It does not seem to have been written down, or committed to paper, till the seventh century; and it was probably preserved in the memory of different generations, by its being taught by fathers to their sons, and by the habit of chanting portions of it at the banquets of kings and warriors. It is a poem which in substance belongs to the Continental Teutons as much as to the English; and it marks the point at which their literatures and languages begin to branch off. The scene is laid in the north of Denmark; so that the poem is Northern, and not Southern, Teutonic. Its present form is due to a Christian writer of Northumbria. In literary form, therefore, it is English; and is one of the earliest monuments of our literature. The poem consists of 6350 short lines, and is written throughout in head-rhymes,[15]or alliterative rhymes.
2.CÆDMON.—But the first true English poem was the work of a Northumbrian calledCædmon, who was a servant to the monks of the abbey of Hilda, in Whitby. It was written about the year 670. It is a paraphrase of the history given in the Old and the New Testament. It sings of the creation of the world, of the history of Israel, of the life of Christ, of death, judgment, purgatory, heaven, and hell.
3.BÆDA.—The oldest literature of a nation—the early writings of its childhood—are always poetic; and prose-writings do not appear until the nation has, as it were, grown up. The first English prose-writer wasBæda—or, as he is generally called, The Venerable Bede. He was born in the year 673. Like Cædmon, our first poet, he was a Northumbrian, and belonged to the monastery of Jarrow-upon-Tyne. His most important writings were in Latin; and the best known of them is anEcclesiastical History of the English People. But the work which makes Bæda our first writer of English prose, is a translation into English of theGospel of St John. It was his last work; and, in fact, he died just after he had dictated the last sentence. This was in the year 735.
4.KING ALFRED.—Up to the year 866, Northumbria was the home of learning and literature; and the Northumbrian monks were its loving and diligent cultivators. But the incursions of the Danes, the destruction of the monasteries, and the perpetual danger to life and property arising from the troubled condition of the country, put a stop for some time to study and to letters. The cultivation of English as a book-language reappears, towards the end of the ninth century, in the south of the island. Alfred the Great, king of Wessex, is its great friend and promoter. Winchester was the capital of his kingdom; and it was at Winchester that Alfred and his colleagues laboured at the writing of English books. He invited great scholars from different parts of the world; he set up schools; he himself taught a school in his own court; he translated the Latin manuals of the time into English, and added largely to them from his own materials; he translated also theHistoryof the Venerable Bede; and, most probably, he worked at theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle, and made it much fuller and more detailed than it had ever been before. He founded schools in the different parts of his kingdom, with the purpose and in the hope that ‘every free-born youth, who has the means, may attend to his book till he can read English writing perfectly.’ Alfred was born in the year 849, and died in 901. His own personal diligence—his unceasing head-work, are well known. He gave eight hours aday to the work of public affairs—of managing the business of his kingdom; eight hours to books and study; and he reserved only eight hours for sleep, meals, exercise, and amusement. The following is a passage from one of King Alfred’s writings:
Swa claenë heo waes othfeallen on Angel-cynne, thaet swithe feawa waeran be-heonan Humbre the hira thenunge cuthon understandan on Englisc, ohthe farthon an aerend-gewrit of Ledene on Englisc areccan; and ic wene thaet naht monige be-geondan Humbre naeron.
So clean (completely) it was ruined (had ruin fallen) on the English folk (kin), that very few were on this side Humber who their service could understand in English, or out (forth) an epistle (errand-writing) from Latin into English declare (= translate); and I wene that not many beyond Humber were (who could do this).
5.THE ANGLO-SAXON CHRONICLE.—This chronicle was written chiefly by monks, and was, in its earliest forms, a dry register or record of events—of the births and deaths of kings, bishops, earls, and other distinguished persons. In Alfred’s time, it became more of a history; and even war-songs and battle odes are quoted in it. It was continued down to the death of King Stephen in 1154; and the last portions of it were composed and transcribed by the monks of Peterborough.
6.ARCHBISHOP ÆLFRIC.—Ælfric was Archbishop of Canterbury in the early part of the eleventh century; and he translated the first seven books of the Bible, and part of Job, into the oldest form of English, which is generally calledAnglo-Saxon. The following is a specimen:
1. On anginnë gesceôp God heofenan and eordan.
In beginning shaped God heaven and earth.
4. God geseah thâ, thaet hit gôd vaes, and he gedaeldë thaet leóht fram thâm theóstrum.
God saw then, that it good was, and he dealed (divided) the light from the darkness.
7.ANGLO-SAXON GOSPELS.—This translation of the four gospels forms another land-mark in the history of our English tongue. This translation was made before the Norman Conquest—before French words had come into ourlanguage, and therefore before the inflections of English had dropped off from the words.
8.OLD ENGLISH DIALECTS.—For more than a century after the Conquest, English ceased to be used as a literary language—as a book-speech, except in theSaxon Chronicle, which was continued down to 1154. It still continued, of course, to be the language of the English nation. The Normans, when they used books at all, imported French books from France; and they never dreamed that English was a language worthy to be written down. Different English counties spoke different kinds of English; and this continued for many centuries—and still continues to a considerable extent. Thus the English spoken by a Yorkshire-man is very different from the English spoken by a Dorsetshire-man; and the English of both differs very much from that spoken in Kent. But, in the eleventh and twelfth centuries—and even much later—travelling was very difficult and expensive; working-men could not travel at all; there was little motive to travel for any one; and generations were born and died within the same village, or on one farm, or at least in one part of the ‘country-side.’ Thus different parts of this island pronounced their English in their own way; had their own grammar—that is, their own inflections; and each division of England looked upon itself as the right and correct speakers of the English tongue. But, among the large number of different dialects, there gradually emerged into distinct and even remarkable prominence three chief dialects. These are now known as theNorthern,Midland, andSouthern. The grammar of the three differs in several respects; but the chief grammatical mark is found in the plural ending of the present tense of verbs. This isësin the North;enin the Midland dialect; andethin the South. Thus we have:
This variety of the plural forms the test which enablesreaders of books written in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, to determine in what part of England and in what dialect they were written. The following are the chief books written in these dialects:
9.THE FIRST ENGLISH BOOK AFTER THE NORMAN CONQUEST.—Normandy was lost to England in the reign of King John, in the year 1204. From that date, as we have seen, there was a compulsion on the Norman-French to forget their foreign origin, and to look upon themselves as genuine Englishmen. A year after, in the year 1205, ten years before the winning of the Magna Charta, appeared the first work—it was a poem—that was written in English after the Conquest. It is a translation by a Somersetshire priest calledLayamonorLaweman, from a French poem.Brutis the French form of the nameBrutus, who was said to be a son of Æneas, and to be the founder of the British nation. In those rude times, when history was quite unknown, the origin of every nation was traced up to Troy, and the persons of theIliadof Homer. TheBrutis a poem written chiefly in head-rhymes, and consists of about thirty thousand lines. But though it is translated from a French poem, there are not fifty French words in the whole—that is, there is not one French word in every six hundred lines.
10.ORM’S ORMULUM, 1215.—TheOrmulumwas a poem written by an Augustine monk, calledOrmorOrmin, and called after his own name. It is a poem of nearlytwenty thousand short lines, without rhyme of any kind—but with a regular number of accents. There are not five French words in the whole poem. Orm was extremely particular about his spelling; and, when an accent struck a consonant after ashortvowel, he insisted on doubling the consonant.
11.LANGLAND AND CHAUCER.—William Langland represents the part of the nation that spoke pure English; Geoffrey Chaucer, that part which spoke English with a large admixture of Norman-French. In fact, Chaucer’s poems show the high-water mark of the French saturation of our English vocabulary. Langland—a west-countryman, a monk, a man of the people, and of intensely radical sympathies—was born in 1332; Chaucer, a Londoner, in the very centre of English society, page to the Duchess of Clarence at sixteen years of age, and afterwards for great part of his life in court employment, was born in 1340. Both died in the year 1400. Langland’s most important poem is theVision of (concerning) Piers Plowman. It is written in pure English, and in head-rhyme. It is the last English poem that was written in this kind of alliterative verse. The following lines are taken from the introduction:
Chaucer’s great work is hisCanterbury Tales, a series of tales supposed to be told by a company of pilgrims to beguile their journey to the shrine of St Thomas of Canterbury. The company represented men and women of almost every class in England; and their manners and character are painted with wonderful truth and beauty. The following is a passage from thePrologueto theCanterbury Tales; andthe French words are in italics. It is from the character of theKnight:
And evermore he had asovereyn prys,[16]And, though that he was worthy, he was wys,And of hisport[17]as meke as is a mayde.He nevere yit novileinye[18]ne saydeIn al his lyf, unto nomaner[19]wight.He was averray perfight gentil[20]knight.But, for to tellen you of hisarray,[21]His hors was good, but he ne was noughtgay.[22]
And evermore he had asovereyn prys,[16]And, though that he was worthy, he was wys,And of hisport[17]as meke as is a mayde.He nevere yit novileinye[18]ne saydeIn al his lyf, unto nomaner[19]wight.He was averray perfight gentil[20]knight.But, for to tellen you of hisarray,[21]His hors was good, but he ne was noughtgay.[22]
And evermore he had asovereyn prys,[16]And, though that he was worthy, he was wys,And of hisport[17]as meke as is a mayde.He nevere yit novileinye[18]ne saydeIn al his lyf, unto nomaner[19]wight.He was averray perfight gentil[20]knight.But, for to tellen you of hisarray,[21]His hors was good, but he ne was noughtgay.[22]
12.ALLITERATION OR HEAD-RHYME.—Alliteration is the correspondence of the first letter of several words in the same line. It is like the well-known: ‘Peter Piper picked a peck of pepper off a pewter plate.’
Round the rugged rocks the ragged rascals ran.
Round the rugged rocks the ragged rascals ran.
Round the rugged rocks the ragged rascals ran.
In Old English or Anglo-Saxon poetry it was the only kind of rhyme used. The rhyme which is called end-rhyme was not known to the Saxons, and was imported into England by the Normans. In the ordinary Old English verse, the lines are written in pairs, and in each pair there are usually three alliterations, two in the first line and one in the second. Even as late as the fourteenth century we find such verses as the following, written by Langland:
I shop me into a schroud,A scheep as I werë.
I shop me into a schroud,A scheep as I werë.
I shop me into a schroud,A scheep as I werë.
Shakspeare is fond of making fun of it. But it has unconsciously survived in the language; and there is not a single great English poet, from Shakspeare to Tennyson, who does not make a large use of it. Thus Shakspeare himself has
In maiden meditation, fancy-free.Full fathom five thy father lies.
In maiden meditation, fancy-free.Full fathom five thy father lies.
In maiden meditation, fancy-free.
Full fathom five thy father lies.
and many other similar lines.
Milton gives us such lines as:
Him the Almighty powerHurled headlong flaming from the ethereal sky.
Him the Almighty powerHurled headlong flaming from the ethereal sky.
Him the Almighty powerHurled headlong flaming from the ethereal sky.
Shelley has the line:
Our sweetest songs are those which tell of saddest thought.
Our sweetest songs are those which tell of saddest thought.
Our sweetest songs are those which tell of saddest thought.
Tennyson is very fond of alliteration. Thus, in theDay-Dream:
And o’er them many a sliding starAnd many a merry wind was borne;And, streamed through many a golden bar,The twilight melted into morn.
And o’er them many a sliding starAnd many a merry wind was borne;And, streamed through many a golden bar,The twilight melted into morn.
And o’er them many a sliding starAnd many a merry wind was borne;And, streamed through many a golden bar,The twilight melted into morn.
13.JOHN GOWER.—A contemporary of Chaucer was John Gower, a gentleman of Kent. The date of his birth is not known; but he survived Chaucer eight years, dying in 1408. He wrote theLover’s Confessionin English verse; theMirror of the Meditative Manin French verse (lost); theVoice of one crying, in Latin. His style was heavy and prosaic. Chaucer called him the ‘moral Gower.’
14.JOHN BARBOUR.—Another eminent contemporary of Chaucer was John Barbour, Archdeacon of Aberdeen, who wrote in the Scottish, or Northern English, form of our tongue. He was a learned man, and a man of the world, who filled important office in the employment of the Scottish king. His great work was a narrative poem,The Bruce, giving an account of the life and adventures of the great Bruce. It is valuable both as a monument of our language and a storehouse of historical incident. Barbour died about 1395. The literature of Scotland was worthily continued by the royal poet, James I. (1394-1437), brought up as a prisoner in England, and well educated. His great work was theKing’s Quhair(or book), a poem in the style and in one of the metres of Chaucer.
15.SIR JOHN MANDEVILLE.—Sir John Mandeville is the first writer of thenewEnglish prose—the prose with a large addition of French words. He is sometimes called the Father of English Prose. He was born at St Albans, in Hertfordshire, in 1300, and died at Liège, in 1372. He was a greattraveller, soldier, and physician; travelled through the Holy Land, served under the Sultan of Egypt and the Great Khan of Cathay (the old name forChina); and wandered through almost all the then known parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. He wrote his travels in three languages—first in Latin for the learned; then in French for the Norman-French; and lastly in English, ‘that every man of the nation might understand them.’ The following is a specimen of his prose:
And 2 myle from Ebron (Hebron) is the grave of Lothe (Lot) that was Abrahames brother. And a lytille fro Ebron is the mount of Mambre, of the whiche the valeye takethe his name. And there is a tree of oke, that the Sarazinis clepen (call)Dirpë, that is of Abrahames tyme, the whiche men clepen the drye tree. And thei saye, that it hathe ben there sithe the beginnynge of the world, and was sumtyme grene, and bare leves, unto the tyme that oure Lord dyede on the cros; and thanne it dryede, and so dyden alle the trees, that weren thanne in the world.
And 2 myle from Ebron (Hebron) is the grave of Lothe (Lot) that was Abrahames brother. And a lytille fro Ebron is the mount of Mambre, of the whiche the valeye takethe his name. And there is a tree of oke, that the Sarazinis clepen (call)Dirpë, that is of Abrahames tyme, the whiche men clepen the drye tree. And thei saye, that it hathe ben there sithe the beginnynge of the world, and was sumtyme grene, and bare leves, unto the tyme that oure Lord dyede on the cros; and thanne it dryede, and so dyden alle the trees, that weren thanne in the world.
This is almost quite like modern English—with the exception of the spelling;
16.JOHN WICLIFFE.—John Wicliffe,* or John de Wycliffe, was born at the village of Hipswell, near Richmond, in Yorkshire, in the year 1324. He died at the vicarage of Lutterworth, in Leicestershire, in the year 1384, at the age of sixty. He was the first Englishman who attempted to make a complete translation of the Scriptures. Of this work, however, the Gospels alone can be certainly identified as the work of Wicliffe himself. The Old Testament and apocryphal books were translated principally by Nicolas de Hereford, and it is supposed that his work was interrupted in 1382, and that the Bible was completed about that time by extracting the text of the gospels from Wicliffe’s commentary on the gospels (written in 1360), and adding to it a new translation of the rest of the New Testament. A later version was finished by Wicliffe’s friend, John Purvey, about 1388, and appears to be mainly a revision of the work of Hereford and Wicliffe. The later is a less close and literal version than the former, and is expressed in more idiomatic and less laboured English.
17.OUR ENGLISH BIBLE AND ITS HISTORY.—The first fresh translation from the original sources was that ofWilliam Tyndale. His New Testament, printed at Cologne and at Worms, reached the English shores in 1526, and was followed three years later by the Pentateuch. To this translation our authorised version owes much of its peculiar force and beauty. The first complete English Bible was that ofMiles Coverdale, which appeared in 1535. In April 1539 appeared theGreat Bible(so called from its large size), prepared by Coverdale at Paris, but completed in London under the patronage of Thomas Cromwell. The translation of the psalms in the Great Bible has remained, without alteration, the Psalter in the Book of Common Prayer. During the last year of Mary’s reign and the beginning of Elizabeth’s, the English refugees at Geneva completed a fresh revision of the Great Bible, which was published in 1560, in a handy size, with a marginal commentary, and the chapters divided into verses. TheGenevan version(sometimes called the Breeches Bible), became popular with the Puritans, and more than two hundred editions of it were published, and it gave way slowly before the present authorised version. Soon after Elizabeth’s accession, Archbishop Parker organised a revision of the Great Bible of 1539, which was published in 1568, and became known as theBishops’ Bible. During Elizabeth’s reign, the Popish exiles at Rheims produced a new version from the Vulgate, which was printed at Douay in 1609, and is known as theDouay Bible. The English Bible which is now recognised as the ‘authorised version’ wherever the English language is spoken, is a revision of the Bishops’ Bible, begun in 1604 and finished in 1611. Of this noble version many millions have been printed, and its general acceptance by all English-speaking people is the best testimony to its excellence. No book has had so great an influence on our language and literature; its words and phrases have been preserved in our vocabulary, and are the most familiar to our ears, consecrated as they are with the associations of two hundred and seventy years. A revision of our version by the most eminent scholars is now in progress, and the revisedNew Testament was published, May 17, 1881. Appended is a passage from Romans (xii. 6-8), as it appears in Wicliffe’s, Tyndale’s, the Great Bible, the Genevan Bible, the Bishop’s Bible, and our Authorised Version:
1. WICLIFFE.
6 Therfor we that han yiftis dyuer-synge, aftir the grace that is youun to vs, ethir prophecie, aftir the resoun of feith;
7 ethir seruise, in mynystryng; ethir he that techith, in techyng;
8 he that stirith softli, in monestyng; he that yyueth, in symplenesse; he that is souereyn, in bisynesse; he that hath merci, in gladnesse.
2. TYNDALE.
6 Seyinge that we have divers gyftes accordynge to the grace that is geven vnto vs, yf eny man have the gyft off prophesy lett hym have it that itt be agreynge vnto the fayth.
7 Let hym that hath an office, wayte on his office. Let hym that teacheth take hede to his doctryne.
8 Let hym that exhorteth geve attendaunce to his exhortacion. Yf eny man geve, lett hym do it with singlenes. Let hym that rueleth do it with diligence. Yf eny man shewe mercy lett hym do itt with cherfulnes.
3. GREAT BIBLE.
6 Seynge that we haue dyuers gyftes accordynge to the grace that is geuen vnto vs: yf any man haue the gyfte of prophecy let him haue it that it be agreing vnto ye fayth.
7 Let hym that hath an office wayte on hys office. Let hym that teacheth take hede to hys doctrine.
8 Let hym that exhorteth geue attendaunce to his exhortacion. If any man geue, let hym do it wyth synglenes. Let hym that ruleth do it with diligence. If any man shewe mercy, let him do it with cherfulnes.
4. GENEVAN BIBLE.
6 Seeing then that we haue giftes that are diuers, according to the grace that is giuen vnto vs whether we haue prophesie, let us prophesie according to the proportion of faith:
7 Or an office let vs waite on the office: or hee that teacheth on teaching.
8 Or he that exhorteth on exhortation: hee that distributeth let him do it with simplicitie: he that ruleth with diligence: hee that sheweth mercie with chearefulnes.
5. BISHOPS’ BIBLE.
6 Seeing that wee haue diuers giftes according to the grace that is giuen vnto vs eyther prophecie, after the measure of fayth.
7 Eyther office, in administration: or he that teacheth, in teaching.
8 Or he that exhorteth, in exhorting: he that giueth in singlenesse, he that ruleth in diligence: hee that is mercyfull in chearefulnesse.
6. AUTHORISED VERSION.
6 Hauing then gifts differing according to the grace that is giuen to vs, whether prophecie, let vs prophecie according to the proportion of faith.
7 Or ministery, let vs wait, on our ministring: or hee that teacheth on teaching.
8 Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giueth let him doe it with simplicite: hee that ruleth, with diligence: hee that sheweth mercy with cheerefulnesse.
(Poems are mentioned inItalics.)
WILLIAM DUNBAR, 1450-1530.Poet.
The Thistle and the Rose(1503);The Golden Terge(1508);The Dance of the Seven Deadly Sins. The greatest of the Scottish poets except Burns. He has been called ‘the Chaucer of Scotland.’
SIR THOMAS MORE, 1480-1535.Barrister; Lord Chancellor of England; writer on social philosophy; historian.
History of King Edward V., and of his brother, and of Richard III. (1513); Utopia (1516)—a description of a model state of society, written to influence the bettering of the laws of England.
WILLIAM TYNDALE, 1477-1536.Priest; translator; author.
Translation of New Testament (1525, 1534), also of the Pentateuch and Jonah (1530-31). He has done more by his version to fix and shape our language in its present form, than any writer between Chaucer and Shakspeare.
SIR DAVID LYNDSAY, 1490-1556.Keeper of Prince James (afterwards James V. of Scotland); Lyon king-at-arms; poet.
Satire of the Three Estates, that is, King, Lords, and Commons;Monarchie.
ROGER ASCHAM, 1515-1568.Lecturer on Greek at Cambridge; tutor to Edward VI. and Queen Elizabeth.
Toxophĭlus, a treatise on shooting with the bow; The Schoolmaster, a book about teaching, especially the teaching of Latin.
JOHN FOX, 1517-1587.Prebendary of Salisbury Cathedral.
Book of Martyrs (1563), an account of the chief Protestant martyrs, chiefly those in the reign of Mary.
EDMUND SPENSER, 1552-1599.Secretary to Viceroy of Ireland; poet.
Shepherd’s Calendar(1579);Faerie Queene(1590-96), in six books.
RICHARD HOOKER, 1553-1600.Scholar and theologian; Master of the Temple; and rector of a country church.
Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity. This is a defence of the Church of England, and contains passages of great majesty and splendour of diction.
SIR PHILIP SIDNEY, 1554-1586.Courtier; romancist; poet.
Arcadia, a romance (1580); Defence of Poesie. SomeSonnets.
FRANCIS BACON, 1561-1626.Lord High Chancellor of England; essayist; philosopher.
Essays (1597); Advancement of Learning (1605); Novum Organum (1620); and other works on philosophy, and the art of gaining new knowledge.
SIR WALTER RALEIGH, 1552-1618.Courtier; navigator; historian.
History of the World (1614), written in the Tower of London, where he lay for about thirteen years. His work is ‘one of the finest models of our quaint and stately old English style.’
WILLIAM SHAKSPEARE, 1564-1616.Dramatist and poet; born at Stratford-on-Avon; went to London at the age of twenty-two; left London in 1609, and from that time lived in his native town.
TragediesandComedies, andHistorical Plays; thirty-seven in all. Among his greatest tragedies are,Hamlet,Lear,Macbeth,Othello,Romeo and Juliet. Of his comedies the best are theTempest,Midsummer Night’s Dream,As you like it,Merchant of Venice, &c. Of his historical plays,Richard III.andJulius Cæsarare specially worth mention.Minor Poems.Wrote no prose.
BEN JONSON, 1574-1637.Dramatist; poet; prose-writer.
Tragedies and Comedies, of the latter, the greatest areVolpone or the Fox;Every Man in His Humour; andThe Alchemist.
WILLIAM DRUMMOND, 1585-1649.Poet.
SonnetsandReligious Poems.
SIR THOMAS BROWNE, 1605-1682.Medical practitioner at Norwich.
Religio Medici (the religion of a physician), contains the author’s opinions on a great variety of subjects; Urn Burial, a learned and eloquent work.
JOHN MILTON, 1608-1674.Poet; Latin secretary to Cromwell (1649). Became blind in 1654.
Minor Poems;Paradise Lost;Paradise Regained;Samson Agonistes. Many prose works, chiefly on politics, and in defence of the Commonwealth.
THOMAS HOBBES, 1588-1679.Philosopher.
Leviathan (1651), a great philosophical and political work.
JEREMY TAYLOR, 1613-1667.Bishop of Down in Ireland.
Holy Living and Holy Dying (1649); and many other books and sermons.
SAMUEL BUTLER, 1612-1680.Secretary to the Earl of Carberry.
Hudibras(1663), a mock-heroic poem, written to caricature the Puritans.
JOHN DRYDEN, 1631-1700.Poet-laureate and Historiographer Royal. Also a playwright; poet; prose-writer; critic.
Annus Mirabilis(1667)—a poem on thePlagueand theFire of London;Absalom and Achitophel(1681)—a poem on political matters;Hind and Panther(1687). He wrote manyTragediesandComediesandOdes; a translation of theÆneidof Virgil. He wrote a great deal of the best prose—chiefly Essays and Introductions to his poems.
JOHN BUNYAN, 1628-1688.Tinker and preacher.
The Pilgrim’s Progress (1678); the Holy War, and other works.
JOHN LOCKE, 1632-1704.Member of the Board of Trade; one of the leading men in English philosophy.
Letters on Toleration (1689); Essay concerning the Human Understanding (1690); Thoughts concerning Education, and other prose works.
DANIEL DEFOE, 1661-1731.Pamphleteer; journalist; had a very troubled and changeful career.
Robinson Crusoe (1719);The True-born Englishman; Journal of the Plague; The Shortest Way with the Dissenters; and more than a hundred books and pamphlets in all. He is one of the most taking writers that ever lived.
JONATHAN SWIFT, 1667-1745.Dean of St Patrick’s in Dublin; satirist; poet; prose-writer.
Battle of the Books; Tale of a Tub (1704); Gulliver’s Travels (1726). Many of the ablest political pamphlets of the day. A number ofPoems. His prose was the strongest and most nervous prose written in the eighteenth century.
SIR RICHARD STEELE, 1671-1729.Gentleman usher to Prince George; a fashionable man about town.
Essays in the Tatler, in the Spectator, in the Guardian—all of them a kind of magazine. A few plays.
JOSEPH ADDISON, 1672-1719.Secretary of State.
Essays in the Tatler, in the Spectator, and in the Guardian.Cato: a tragedy (1713). Several shortPoems. His prose is the finest, most genial, and most delicate of all the prose-writings of the eighteenth century.
ALEXANDER POPE, 1688-1744.Poet; a Roman Catholic.
Essay on Criticism(1711);Rape of the Lock—the story of the stealing of a lock of hair;Translations of the Iliad and Odyssey, half of the latter done by assistants (1715-20); theDunciad;Essay on Man. A few essays in prose; and a volume of Letters.
JAMES THOMSON, 1700-1748.Poet; held sinecure cure offices under government.
The Seasons—a poem in blank verse;The Castle of Indolence, a poem in the nine-lined stanza of Edmund Spenser.
HENRY FIELDING, 1707-1754.Novelist and journalist.
Many comedies—now forgotten. Joseph Andrews (1742); Tom Jones (1749); Amelia (1751). He was the ‘first great English novelist, and he remains to this day one of the greatest.’
DAVID HUME, 1711-1776.Librarian; secretary to the British Embassy in France.
Treatise of Human Nature (1737); Essays (1742); Inquiry concerning the Principles of Morals; History of England (1754-62). Writes very clear and pleasant prose.
DR SAMUEL JOHNSON, 1709-1784.Schoolmaster; literary man; dictionary-maker.
London(1738); theVanity of Human Wishes; The Rambler (1750-52); The Idler; English Dictionary (1755); Rasselas, a kind of novel; Lives of the Poets; and other prose works.
THOMAS GRAY, 1716-1771.Poet; letter-writer; professor of Modern History, Cambridge.
Odes;Elegy written in a Country Churchyard, one of the most pleasing, perfect, and oft-quoted poems in the language. He was also a good letter-writer.
WILLIAM ROBERTSON, 1721-1793.Clergyman; historian; Principal of the University of Edinburgh.
History of Scotland (1759); History of Charles V. (1769); History of America (1777). Most readable and fluent prose.
TOBIAS GEORGE SMOLLETT, 1721-1771.Medical practitioner; poet; pamphleteer; critic and novelist.
Roderick Random; Peregrine Pickle; and Humphrey Clinker. His novels are notable for their broad humour, and an easy picturesque style of narration.
ADAM SMITH, 1723-1790.Professor of Logic in the University of Glasgow; then of Moral Philosophy.
Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759); Enquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). The founder of the science of economics (or wealth of nations).
OLIVER GOLDSMITH, 1728-1774.Poet; literary man; play-writer.
The Vicar of Wakefield (1766); theDeserted Village; She Stoops to Conquer, a comedy. TheTraveller; Citizen of the World; Histories and minorPoems. The writer of the most pleasant prose of the eighteenth century.
EDMUND BURKE 1730-1797.Statesman; ‘the first man in the Commons;’ writer on political philosophy.
Essay on the Sublime and Beautiful (1756); Reflections on the French Revolution (1790). Many speeches, pamphlets, and articles on political matters. One of the deepest political thinkers, most eloquent speakers, and ornate writers of prose that ever lived.
WILLIAM COWPER, 1731-1800.Poet.
Truth, theProgress of Error(1781), and other poems; theTask(1785);John Gilpin;Translations of the Iliad and Odyssey(1791) in blank verse;Hymns. His prose—which consists of letters—is clear, humorous, and pleasant.
EDWARD GIBBON, 1737-1794.Historian; sat eight years in the House of Commons, but never spoke.
Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1776-87); Essays on the Study of Literature (in French). His style is a splendid example ‘of smiting phrases and weighty antithesis.’
ROBERT BURNS, 1759-1796.Ploughman; farmer; Excise officer; poet.
PoemsandSongs(1786-96) (Cottar’s Saturday Night,Jolly Beggars,Tam o’ Shanter,Mountain Daisy, etc.) His prose consists chiefly of letters.
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH, 1770-1850.Distributor of stamps for the county of Westmoreland; poet; poet-laureate.
Descriptive Sketches(1793);Lyrical Ballads(1798);Sonnets;The Excursion(1814);The Prelude. He marks the dawn of a new school of poetry in the nineteenth century.
SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE, 1772-1834.Journalist; secretary; literary man; poet.
The Ancient MarinerandChristabel(1797-1806); several plays, including a translation of Schiller’sWallenstein; many minor poems; The Friend—a set of essays; Confessions of an Inquiring Spirit; Biographia Literaria; Aids to Reflection. His prose is very elaborate and also very musical.
ROBERT SOUTHEY, 1774-1843.Literary man; historian; reviewer; poet; poet-laureate.
Joan of Arc(1793);Thalaba the Destroyer; theCurse of Kehama; Life of Nelson. Firm, clear, and sensible prose. Wrote more than a hundred volumes.
CHARLES LAMB, 1775-1835.Clerk in the East India House; essayist and humorist.
Essays of Elia (1820-25), which are quaint and familiar, and full of kindly wit and grotesque humour.
SIR WALTER SCOTT, 1771-1832.Advocate; poet: novelist.
Border Minstrelsy—a collection of old Border ballads (1802);Lay of the Last Minstrel(1805);Marmion(1808); theLady of the Lake(1810); Waverley (1814)—the first of that remarkable series, the Waverley Novels. In verse, he is the ‘Homer of Scotland;’ and he was a master of most fluent, bright, flowing narrative prose.
THOMAS CAMPBELL, 1777-1844.Poet; literary man.
Pleasures of Hope(1799);Minor Poems—such asHohenlinden,Battle of the Baltic,Ye Mariners of England,Gertrude of Wyoming(1809). His prose consists chiefly of the Introductions to hisSpecimens of the British Poets.
THOMAS MOORE, 1779-1852.Poet; biographer; historian.
Odes and Epistles(1806);Lalla Rookh(1817); Life of Byron (1830);Irish Melodies(1834); History of Ireland (1836).
LORD BYRON, 1788-1824.(George Gordon). Peer; poet.
English Bards and Scotch Reviewers(1808);Childe Harold(1812); theBride of Abydos(1814); and manyPlays. His prose—which is full of vigour, fire, and eloquence—consists chiefly of letters.
PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY, 1792-1822.Poet.
Queen Mab(1813);Revolt of Islam;Prometheus Unbound(1819)—a tragedy;Odes(The Cloud,To the Skylark, etc.), and many minor poems. His prose consists chiefly of letters.
HENRY HALLAM, 1778-1859.Historian; literary man; Trustee of the British Museum.
View of the State of Europe during the Middle Ages (1818); Constitutional History of England (1827); Literature of Europe (1837); History of the Middle Ages (1848). A clear and impartial writer.
THOMAS DE QUINCEY, 1785-1859.Literary man.
Confessions of an English Opium-eater (1821); Essays on subjects in almost every department of History, Philosophy, and Literature. His style is eloquent, musical, and elaborate. In his own way, he was the finest prose-writer of the nineteenth century.
JOHN KEATS, 1795-1821.Poet.
Endymion(1818);Hyperion;Eve of St Agnes;Odes. His poems are full of beauty and rich and picturesque imagery.
THOMAS CARLYLE, 1795-1881.Mathematician; literary man; reviewer; historian.
Sartor Resartus (1833); The French Revolution, a History (1837); Oliver Cromwell’s Letters and Speeches (1845); Life of John Sterling (1851); History of Friedrich II. of Prussia (1858-65). His style is full of force, fire, and grotesqueness; he paints in vivid colours, and presents a true and exact picture of the living man.
LORD MACAULAY, 1800-1859.Barrister; reviewer; Secretary of the Board of Control for India; member of the Supreme Council of India; historian; peer.
Essay on Milton (1825);Lays of Ancient Rome(1842); Essays (1843); History of England (1848-1859). Wrote a style of the greatest force and picturesqueness—full of allusion, illustration, grace, clearness, and point.
LORD LYTTON, 1805-1873.Novelist; poet; statesman.
Eugene Aram (1831); The Last Days of Pompeii; The Caxtons; some plays, minorPoems, and essays. Writes a most clear, fluent, bright, ornate, and readable English style.
JOHN STUART MILL, 1806-1873.Clerk in the East India House; Utilitarian philosopher.
System of Logic (1843); Political Economy (1844); Essay on Liberty. One of the foremost thinkers of his time.
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW, 1807-1882.Professor of Modern Languages and Literature; poet.
Evangeline(1847);Hiawatha(1855);Minor Poems(Excelsior;A Psalm of Life, etc.) One of the sweetest and best known of American poets.
ALFRED TENNYSON, 1809-Poet; poet laureate.
Poems, chiefly Lyrical(1830);In Memoriam(1850);Idylls of the King(1859-73);Enoch Arden(1864); and several dramas. His poetical style is full of beauty, sweetness, and variety.
ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING, 1809-1861.Poetess; the wife of Robert Browning.
Poems(1838);Aurora Leigh(1856);The Cry of the Children;Cowper’s Grave;Sonnets from the Portuguese, etc. A poetess of infinite sweetness and power.
ROBERT BROWNING, 1812-Poet.
Pauline(1833);Paracelsus(1836);The Ring and the Book, and about two dozen more volumes. His poems are very difficult to understand, but are very well worth understanding.
WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY, 1811-1863.Novelist.
Vanity Fair (1846); Pendennis (1849); Esmond; English Humorists, etc. The finest novelist and one of the best prose-writers of the century.
CHARLES DICKENS, 1812-1870.Novelist.
Pickwick Papers (1837); Oliver Twist; Nicholas Nickleby; David Copperfield; Dombey and Son; Christmas Books, etc. He has been read over and over again by hundreds of thousands of delighted readers.
JOHN RUSKIN, 1819-Art-critic; moralist; literary-man.
Modern Painters (1843); The Seven Lamps of Architecture; The Stones of Venice (1851-53); Sesame and Lilies; Lectures on Art; Fors Clavigera. One of the most wonderful and imaginative writers of English prose that ever lived.
GEORGE ELIOT 1820-1880.(Marian Evans), Novelist.
Adam Bede (1858); Middlemarch (1871); Daniel Deronda (1876);Poems. The novels of this accomplished lady rank among the greatest of modern times.
THE END.Edinburgh:Printed by W. & R. Chambers.