Chapter III: Introduction: , Glossary, and Indexes (3)

'In Parl. Foules, 121, the preterite _broughte_ rymes with the pp. _wrought_.' Answer; the rimes are: _broght-e_, _y-wroght-e_, _thoght-e_; the form _y-wroghte_ occurs in the phrase 'with lettres large y-wroghte,' where _y-wroghte_ is treated as a plural adjective; and there is no error at all.

'In Troilus, i. 463, the pp. _fled_ rymes with the preterite _bredde_.' As before, the phrase is: 'Alle othere dredes weren from him _fledde_.' Here _fledde_ is treated as a plural adjective, and there is no error at all. One would have thought that Chaucer knew something of the language of his time.

'In Troilus, ii. 1079, the pp. _excused_ [rimes] with the preterite _accusede_.' But the preterite of _accusen_ was _accused_; the addition of the full suffix _-ede_ is rare, and chiefly confined to monosyllabic roots.

'In Troil. iv. 1422, the pp. _sprad_ [rimes] with the preterite _hadde_' The line ends, 'with herte and eres _spradde_'; where _spradde_ is treated as a plural adjective. No error.

'In Troil. v. 1758, the preterite _mette_ [rimes] with the pp. _whet_.' It is the same story; the phrase is 'hir speres weren _whette_.' No error.

'In the Legend, 786, the preterite _heryede_ rymes with the pp. _beryed_.' As the usual preterite was _heryed_ (_h['e]r-y-ed-e_ being too cumbrous and almost unpronounceable), there is no error.

'In the Legend, 2384, the pp. _served_ [rimes] with the preterite _deservede_' But the preterite was _deserved_. The full ending _-ede_ was seldom added to roots of more than one syllable, least of all when the verb happened to be of French origin. By ignoring the habits of the language of Chaucer's time, such objections might have been largely multiplied; it is surprising to find that so few have been noted.

'In the Knightes Tale, A 2343, the preterite _signifyede_ rymes with the pp. _cried_.' However, the preterite was _signifyed_.

'In the Man of Lawes Tale, B 559, the preterite _mette_ rymes with the pp. _yshet_; [in B 435] the pp. _converted_ with the preterite _astertede_; [in B 547] the pp. _exiled_ with the preterite _bigilede_; and [in B 1115] the pp. _ymet_ with the infin. _lette_ and the preterite _sette_.' All the charges against Chaucer break down. The pp. _yshet_ is properly _yshette_, plural. The preterite of _asterten_ is _asterted_. The preterite of _bigilen_ is _bigiled_. And the pp. _ymet_ should be _ymette_, plural. A critic who imagines that such cumbrous preterites as _astertede_ and _bigilede_ were in common use, should be asked to read Middle-English authors till he meets with a few examples of them.

'In the Clerkes Tale, E 498, the preterite _amevede_ rimes with the pp. _agreved_.' But the preterite was _ameved_.

'In the Somnours Tale, D 1833, the pp. _amended_ rymes with the preterite _defendede_.' But the preterite was _defended_. Similarly, the preterites _redressede_, _tariede_, _espyede_, _cryede_, _eylede_, _sewede_ are conjured up to put Chaucer in the wrong; an argument which requires no serious refutation. So far was Chaucer from using the form _espyede_ that, whenever he desires to vary from the form _espyed_, he naturally uses the form _espyde_, as in G 1230. Our ancestors were but human; they did not mind saying either _espyed_ or _espyde_; but _espy-e-de_ was a little too much.

'In the Compl. of Mars, 65, the preterite _com_ rymes with the pp. _overcome_; but as in this instance, there is a possibility that _com_ may be deemed a relic of the ancient subj. usage, and therefore entitled to a final _e_, the example will not be insisted upon at this point.' This seems to suggest, as an alternative, that _come_ may be the preterite subjunctive; however it is neither the preterite nor the preterite subjunctive, but simply the present subjunctive, being perfectly correct. The line is: 'That dwell'th in solitud-e til she come,' i.e. that dwells [present tense] in solitude till she may come. The preterite subj. _c[=o]me_ would have a long close _o_, and could not possibly rime (in Chaucer) with the short _u_ in _overcome_ (aoverkum[*e]).

It is objected to Legend, 1391, that the insertion of _hath_ causes 'the adj. _goode_, of the definite declension, to be shorn of its final _e_ in pronunciation.' The line is: 'As shal the good-man that therfor hath payed,' where _good-man_ is a compound word, occurring in Matt. xxiv. 43, and elsewhere; and it is interesting to find that Chaucer even uses _good men_ in the vocative plural, instead of _good-e_ men, as a familiar form of address; B 4630. If, as seems to be proposed, we remove the word _hath_, and read _good-e_, we get: 'As shal the good-e man that therfor payed'; which rimes just as well as before, _payed_ being an admissible form of the preterite, as well as _payde_. But then the epithet _goode_ becomes comparatively otiose.

In the Legend, 1696, it is maintained that _wroghte_ is a past participle. It is surely a preterite, the word _they_, i.e. the besiegers, being understood. This is a little forced, but it cannot be helped. To take it as a pp. gives no sense; for it then becomes, 'the siege lay full long, and (was) little wrought.' To 'work a siege' would be a harsh expression. If, on the other hand, we are to understand _was_ before _wrought_, we may just as well understand _they_. It is quite as easy.

s. 49. My position is, in short, that the attack upon Chaucer in this passage (Studies in Chaucer, i. 402-405) fails in every single instance. It is called 'a formidable' list; but is nothing of the kind. The attack against Gower also fails in every single instance. Omitting the two charges which the author himself withdraws, the passage (p. 405) runs thus:--

'In the Confessio Amantis, the preterites _herde_, _wente_, _tremblede_, and _com_ will be found ryming respectively with the past participles _answerd_, _went_, _assembled_, and _overcome_ (see i. 151, ii. 7, iii. 263, 350). He has also the infin. _wedde_ ryming with the pp. _sped_ (iii. 265).'

Answer. _Herde_ rimes with the _plural_ pp. _answerde_. In ii. 7, the text is wrong, and makes nonsense[49]. _Trembled_ is a correct preterite. _C[=o]m_ could not rime with _overc[)o]me_ in the least, if it were a preterite; the reading _c[)o]me_ is right, and represents the pres. sing. subj. = may come. In iii. 265, the reading is obviously false, as the line consists of _eleven_ syllables; we have merely to strike out _were_, which reduces the line to the normal length, and turns the pp. _sped_ into the pt. t. _spedde_, correctly. The syllables should have been counted.

s. 50. ASSONANCES. I have drawn attention to the above passages because it affords an opportunity of illustrating Chaucer's habits. I have said that Prof. Lounsbury is very anxious to fasten upon Chaucer the charge of using mere assonances, i.e. syllables in which nothing rimes but the vowel-sound; for specimens of which see vol. i. p. 5. I doubt if the charge can be fairly proved. But it is well to examine the cases.

Book of the Duchesse, 79, 80. L. 79 ends with _terme_. L. 80, according to Thynne's edition[50], ends in _yerne_. The correction of _yerne_ to _erme_, which produces a perfect rime, is so obvious, that it occurred to Mr. Bradshaw, to myself, and to Ten Brink (to the best of my belief) independently. As the reading _yerne_ is due to no MS., but rests upon Thynne, who is, practically, the sole authority for ll. 31-96, I decline to bow down to him; seeing that Chaucer himself uses _erme_ elsewhere (C 312), to rime with the same word _terme_.

In Troil. v. 9, most MSS. have _clere_, to rime with _grene_ and _quene_; a mere assonance. But, as some MSS. have _shene_ (see vol. ii. p. lxxii), it seems absurd to reject such an easy correction. In the Parl. Foules, 296, the same two words _grene_ and _quene_ rime with 'the somer-sonne _shene_'; a highly suggestive fact. And in the Cant. Tales, _shene_ rimes six times with _grene_, and three times with _queene_, and with no other word except _sustene_ (once); which is, again, a suggestive fact.

Only one more instance is known, viz. in Troil. ii. 884, where _syke_ rimes with _endyte_ and _whyte_. It is not impossible that Chaucer wrote _syte_; see my note.

These three doubtful instances, being all that have been found in the whole of Chaucer's works, compare favourably, to say the least, with the six indubitable instances occurring in Fragment B (only) of the Romaunt of the Rose; see vol. i. p. 5. In calculating in errors, we must observe the percentage.

When every mistake, or rather slight inaccuracy or licence, that can be found in Chaucer's works, has been reckoned to his discredit, it will still be found that he observes certain laws with rigid persistence; and it is possible to use these observed peculiarities as tests whereby to enable us to reject decisively such poems as have been attributed to him with more zeal than judgement. It is my deliberate opinion, for example, that Fragment B of the Romaunt of the Rose shews so many deviations[51] from his known habits of riming as to render it impossible that he had anything to do with it.

s. 51. ENDINGS IN -Y and -Y-E. The non-riming of _-y_ with _-y-[:e]_ (see vol. i. p. 5) is a test which cannot be ignored; and it is better to accept its guidance than to attempt to circumvent it, if we would be free from bias.

Even on this point, Prof. Lounsbury is incorrect. In his anxiety to make out a case, he tells us (Studies, i. 389) that the adjective _dry_, 'whether used attributively or predicatively,' rimes always with words of the _-y[:e]_ group, whereas _sly_ is sometimes (correctly) monosyllabic. The two words are essentially different. _Sly_, from Icel. _sloegr_, is monosyllabic when used indefinitely; whereas 'dry' answers to M.E. _drye_, A.S. _dr[=y]ge_, and was never a monosyllable till its final _-e_ at last dropped off. Chaucer handles these two words in different ways, in strict accordance with their etymology.

Yet again (i. 390) he accuses Gower of a false rime in his Confessio Amantis, iii. 320, because he rimes _enemy_ with _envy-e_. This is a serious charge; but an examination of the passage explains the riddle. The answer is that, in this particular passage, the right reading is _enemy-e_, because the word is feminine, as it refers to a woman. The distinction between O.F. _enemi_ (Lat. _inimicum_) and _enemi[:e]_ (Lat. _inimica_) is clear enough in O.F. poetry, as Gower knew very well; and there is no reason why he should not have used his knowledge. The noticeable point is, that every charge of this character, when it comes to be explained, tells precisely the other way. The attempt to prove Chaucer wrong, where he happens to be precisely right, does him more good than harm.

s. 52. METRES AND FORMS OF VERSE.

In the List of Chaucer's Works in vol. i. p. lxii, the various forms of his metre are noticed. It is certain that he adapted most of them from French, especially from Guillaume de Machault, though he no doubt improved the general structure of his lines by the study of Italian models. He nowhere employs Boccaccio's _ottava rima_, and only once attempted a short piece in Dante's _terza rima_, in the Compleint to his Lady. However, this attempt is of unique interest, as Dante's verse was never again imitated till about 1540, when Sir Thomas Wiat wrote his Three Satires.

s. 53. OLD VERSE-FORMS. Chaucer was but little indebted to the forms of English verse used by his predecessors. He doubtless adopted the line of four accents for his translation of The Romaunt of the Rose, because such was the metre of the original. Still, this metre was in use long before his time. It was employed by Wace and Gaimar, and we have an excellent specimen of it in English in the Lay of Havelok, written before A.D. 1300; as well as a long example in the Cursor Mundi. It is also the metre employed by Barbour in his 'Bruce,' and by Gower in his 'Confessio Amantis.' Chaucer employed it in his translation of the Romaunt; in his Ceys and Alcioun, portions of which survive in the Book of the Duchesse; in the Book of the Duchesse itself; and in the House of Fame. Very likely he employed it also in the lost Book of the Lion, as Machault's Dit du Lion is in this metre.

The ballad-metre which appears, in varying forms, in Sir Thopas, was also older than Chaucer's time; it is obvious that this poem is a burlesque.

The four-line stanza employed in the 'Proverbs' was also already known: see, for example, 'The Five Joys of the Virgin,' in An Old Eng. Miscellany, ed. Morris, p. 87.

s. 54. THE EIGHT-LINE STANZA. The poet's first attempt at naturalising a French metre in stanzas, as far as we know, was in his A B C; although the original of this poem is in a different metre. The metre must have been known to Machault, of whose poems only fragments appear in Tarb['e]'s edition; for good examples, see the works of Eustache Deschamps. The same metre is used in the Monkes Tale, the Former Age, and Lenvoy to Bukton; and, thrice repeated, with a refrain, in the Balade to Rosemounde, Fortune, and the Complaint of Venus. It was afterwards taken up by Hoccleve and Lydgate, and by G. Douglas, in his 'King Hart,' but is not a particularly favourite metre. However, with the addition of an Alexandrine line at the end, it became the famous Spenserian stanza of the Faerie Queene[52].

s. 55. THE SEVEN-LINE STANZA. His next achievement was of vast importance. He naturalised the famous seven-line stanza, employed by Machault in several poems, one of which evidently furnished the refrain of Against Women Unconstant; and this is good evidence in favour of the genuineness of this Balade. On account of the great interest attaching to this metre, I here transcribe Machault's Balade in full. And I take occasion to remark, at the same time, that it illustrates the absurdity of an unlucky suggestion that has been lately made, viz. that 'all Balades must needs have an _envoy_, and that envoys to some of Chaucer's Balades must have been lost[53].'

BALLADE: by GUILLAUME de MACHAULT (ed. Tarb['e], p. 55).

Se pour ce muir qu'amours ay bien servi,
Fait mauvais servir si fait signour;
Ne je n'ay pas, ce croy, mort desservi
Pour bien amer de tr[`e]s loial amour[54].
Mais je voy bien que finer faut un jour,
Quant je congnois et voy tout en appert
Qu'en lieu de bleu, Dame, vous vestez vert.

H['e]las! Dame, je vous ay tant chieri
En desirant de merci la doucour[55],
Que je n'ay mais sens ne pooir en mi,
Tant qu'ont min['e] mi soupir et mi plour.
Et m'esp['e]rance est morte sans retour[56],
Quant souvenirs me monstre [`a] d['e]couvert
Qu'en lieu de bleu, Dame, vous vestez vert.

Pour ce maudi les iex dont je vous vi,
L'eure, le jour, et le tr[`e]s cointe atour,
Et la biaut['e] qui ont mon cuer ravi,
Et la plaisir enyvr['e] de folour,
Le dous regart qui me mist en errour;
Et loyaut['e] qui souffre et a souffert
Qu'en lieu de bleu, Dame, vous vestez vert.

This metre is much used by our poet; it occurs in the Lyf of St. Cecile, the Clerkes Tale, the original Palamon and Arcite, the Compleint to his Lady, An Amorous Complaint, Complaint unto Pit[`e], Anelida, Of the Wretched Engendring of Mankinde, the Man of Lawes Tale, the Compleint of Mars, Troilus, Words to Adam, Parliament of Foules, the Prioresses Tale, and Lenvoy to Scogan. It occurs thrice repeated, with a refrain, in Against Women Unconstant, Compleint to his Purs, Lak of Stedfastnesse, Gentilesse, and Truth; as well as in the Balade introduced into the Legend of Good Women, ll. 249-269.

The Envoy to 'Fortune' also consists of a seven-line stanza, but the arrangement of the rimes is different, there being only two rimes in place of the usual three.

This metre was much used by Hoccleve, Lydgate, King James I of Scotland, and others; but is now uncommon.

s. 56. TERZA RIMA. We have only a few lines of _terza rima_, in the Compleint to his Lady; see vol. i. p. 76.

s. 57. TEN-LINE STANZA. A ten-line stanza occurs in the Compleint to his Lady. Perhaps it was an experiment; and perhaps it is somewhat of a failure. The Envoy to the Complaint of Venus also consists of 10 lines.

s. 58. NINE-LINE STANZAS. Chaucer has two nine-line stanzas. Of these, the former has the rimes arranged according to the formula _aabaabbab_, which occurs in Anelida[57]: and two of these stanzas are rendered much more complex, by the use of internal rimes. As this metre is rare, it is perhaps worth noticing that it was employed by Gawain Douglas in his Palace of Honour; and that in the last three stanzas of that poem he even imitates these internal rimes.

The other nine-line stanza, with the formula _aabaabbcc_, occurs in the Complaint of Mars.

s. 59. OTHER STANZAS. A six-line stanza (_ababcb_), repeated six times, forms the Envoy to the Clerkes Tale.

There is another six-line stanza (_ababaa_) in the Envoy to Womanly Noblesse; vol. iv. p. xxvi.

A five-line stanza occurs in the Envoy to the Complaint to his Purse. It was copied in the poem called The Cuckoo and the Nightingale.

s. 60. In Anelida, 256-271, and 317-324, we have two unique stanzas, with lines of varying lengths; the rime-formula being _aaabaaab_, repeated in the inverse order _bbbabbba_. This may be called a virelay in the English sense, and is possibly what Chaucer intended by that name[58].

s. 61. ROUNDELS. Four Roundels occur; three in Merciless Beautee; and one in the Parliament of Foules. For the structure of the Roundel, see vol. i. p. 524.

s. 62. It readily appears that Chaucer was a great metrist, and bestowed many new forms of metre upon our literature. Most of them were, of course, simply borrowed and adapted from French; but it is possible that a few of them were due to his own constructive ability. The poems called Anelida and A Complaint to his Lady exhibit clear examples of his experiments in metrical construction; and he has given us several examples of his skill in overcoming the difficulties of rime. Of these, the chief are The Complaint of Venus, with 72 lines on 9 rimes; The Balade to Rosemounde, with 24 lines on 3 rimes; Womanly Noblesse, with 33 lines on 4 rimes; and the Envoy to the Clerkes Tale, with 36 lines on only 3 rimes.

s. 63. BALADES AND TERNS. The usual form for a Balade was in three stanzas, with a refrain. This rule is partially observed, not only in Balades, but in other poems. Chaucer was fond of grouping his stanzas by threes; such a group has been called a Tern. For examples, see the latter part of the Complaint to Pit[`e], in three groups of three stanzas each; the five groups of three stanzas at the end of the Complaint of Mars; the three stanzas forming the Proem to Anelida; the three groups of three stanzas each in Fortune; and the Triple Roundel. The latter part of the Compleint to his Lady consists of nine stanzas, i.e. thrice three. The Envoy to Scogan has six stanzas, i.e. twice three; whilst the Envoy to Bukton has three only.

s. 64. ENVOYS. There are, usually, _no_ Envoys to Chaucer's Balades. There is one to Fortune, called Lenvoy de Fortune; one addressed to King Richard II, at the end of Lak of Stedfastnesse; one addressed to Scogan; and one addressed to Bukton. That appended to the Complaint to his Purs was obviously supplied at a later date; whilst the so-called Envoy to Truth (only found in one MS.) is hardly an Envoy at all, but merely an additional stanza, in the same strain as the rest.

s. 65. THE HEROIC COUPLET. But Chaucer's greatest metrical gift to England was his use of the Heroic Couplet, which he employed with remarkable success, first in the Legend of Good Women, and soon after, in his Canterbury Tales. This he may well have borrowed from Machault, as has been already explained above; see vol. iii. p. 383, and note 2 on the same page.

The heroic couplet was first copied by Lydgate, who wrote in it two poems of great length, the Siege of Thebes and the Troy-boke. It was also used by Henry the Minstrel in his patriotic poem named the Wallace. It is remarkable that it was almost entirely neglected by Dunbar; the only piece in this metre that is certainly his is one of 34 lines called 'In Prays of Woman.' However, a much longer piece entitled The Freiris of Berwick has also been attributed to him. This metre was also employed by Gawain Douglas in his translation of Vergil.

s. 66. GRAMMATICAL OUTLINES OF CHAUCER'S ENGLISH.

I shall only attempt here a general outline of the most distinguishing characteristics of the grammatical forms used by Chaucer. The student will necessarily consult such works as Prof. Child's Observations on the Language of Chaucer and Gower, which refer to the Canterbury Tales only; the Observations on the Language of Chaucer's Troilus, by Prof. Kittredge (published for the Chaucer Society); the Observations on the Language of Chaucer's Legend of Good Women, by J. M. Manly (in Studies and Notes on Philology and Literature, vol. ii; Ginn and Co., Boston, 1893); and Ten Brink's compact and excellent volume entitled Chaucers Sprache und Verskunst; Leipzig, 1884.

It would be easy to devote a large volume to the study of Chaucer's grammatical forms. The forms of the substantives, in particular, are frequently variable, sometimes on account of their accentuation, which is accommodated to the line in which they happen to occur, and sometimes for reasons which appear somewhat arbitrary. Nothing short of complete lists can satisfy the scholar.

At the same time, such lists are rather bewildering. I therefore attempt here a sketch of the general principles by which Chaucer's usage appears to be regulated; whilst at the same time the reader is requested to remember that most of the rules given below are subject to exceptions; and that sometimes such exceptions are rather numerous. But it is plain that we must begin with general rules.

s. 67. GENERAL RULES. Before noticing these, the following _empirical_ rules for the reading of Chaucer's verse may conveniently be here repeated. Cf. vol. v. p. xxiii.

1. Always pronounce the final _-es_, _-ed_, _-en_, _-er_, or _-e_ in any word, as a distinct and separate syllable at the _end_ of a line and at the caesural pause; so also elsewhere, with the exceptions noted here below, and a few others.

2. The final _-e_ is almost invariably elided, and other light syllables (chiefly final _-ed_, _-en_, _-er_, _-es_, _-y_) are slurred over and nearly absorbed, whenever the word next following begins with a vowel or is one of certain words beginning with _h_, viz. (1) a pronoun, as _he_, _his_, _him_, _her_, _hem_: (2) part of the verb _have_: (3) _heer_ and _how_: (4) mute _h_ in a French word, such as _honour_. Ex. _ev'r_, A 50[59]; _rid'n_, A 57; _ov'ral_, A 249; _ov'rest_, A 290; _fith'l_, 296; _get'n_, 291; _som'r_, 394; _wat'r_, 400; _many_, 406.

NOTE. The caesural pause prevents elision.

3. The final _-e_ is frequently, but not always, suppressed in a few common words (best learnt by observation), such as _were_, _hadde_, _wolde_, _sholde_, and some others. _Thise_, these, is invariably monosyllabic. So also, the medial _-e_ is usually suppressed in such words as _havenes_ (haavnez)[60], _othere_ (oodhr[*e]) _owene_ (aou.n[*e]), _everich_ (aevrich), _sovereyn_ (suvrein). Similarly, the second _e_ is dropped in _t['a]vernes_ (tav.ernz), when the accent is on the first syllable. If it be on the second, then the word is trisyllabic: (taver.nez). Accentuation plays an important part in determining the forms of words.

These three rules meet a large number of cases. Exceptions should be noticed as they arise; and it will usually be found that the exception can be justified.

s. 68. THE STRONG DECLENSION OF SUBSTANTIVES. The forms of substantives frequently present much difficulty in individual cases. The primary rules are these.

1. Substantives which end in a vowel in Anglo-Saxon, in the nominative case, take a final _-e_ in Chaucer, in the nom. and dative. The accusative may be taken to be the same as the nominative in every instance.

The A.S. masculine and neuter nouns include _jo_-stems (Sievers, A.S. Gram. ed. Cook, sect. 246), as _ende_[61]; short _i_-stems (s. 262), as _mete_, A 127; short _u_-stems (s. 270), as _wode_, wood; as well as sbs. of the weak declension, as _ape_.

The A.S. _wo_-stems give M.E. final _-we_, reduced to (u) in pronunciation, as in _sparwe_ (spar.u). The A.S. feminines in _-u_ give M.E. final _-e_; as _sake_, _dore_. Feminine sbs. of the weak declension end in final _-e_, as _tonge_, tongue.

2. Most of the A.S. monosyllabic feminine nouns with a long stem-syllable take a final _-e_ in Chaucer, in the nom., acc., and dative, doubtless because all the oblique cases were dissyllabic. And owing to this tendency, some A.S. monosyllabic nouns of the masculine and neuter genders do the same.

Ex. A.S. _l[=a]r_, lore, Ch. _lore_ (never _loor_); A.S. _borh_, a pledge, Ch. _borwe_. Prof. Child remarks that 'two forms not unfrequently occur, one with, and the other without, the vowel.' Ex. _carte_, acc., B 4208; _cart_, acc., D 1539.

3. The monosyllabic sbs. in Chaucer (i.e. sbs. having no final _-e_) mostly correspond to A.S. masculine and neuter _o_-stems (Sievers, s. 238). If a final _-e_ appears, it is usually in the dative case; but even in this case, it is frequently dropped. Ex. _arm_ (of the body), _boor_, a boar, _breeth_, breath, _corn_, _deer_, _stoon_. Datives: _breeth_, A 5; _doom_, F 928; _day_, A 19; _ring_, F 247; _folk_, A 25; _gold_, A 160. Datives in _-e_; _horne_, Book Duch. 376; _londe_, B 522; _horse_, T. v. 37.

Many of these dative forms may be explained as occurring in 'petrified' phrases, i.e. to phrases (involving datives) that were in common use. 'These,' says Mr. Manly, 'are the phrases which have given rise to the supposition that the regular ending of the dative in Chaucer is _-e_. An examination of the facts, however, will shew that this is not true. The dative ending was preserved in certain phrases which were transmitted and used as phrases, the force of the dative as such being no longer felt. This will appear from a comparison of such phrases as _a bedde_, _to bedde_, _over borde_, _to dethe_, _for fere_, _a-fere_ (afire), _to-hepe_, _a-lyve_, _a-slepe_, _to wyve_, _to the brimme_.' So also _to rede_, T. iv. 679: _in house_, D 352. Nevertheless, a few true datives in _-e_ occur, though they are certainly scarce. We can hardly explain the use of _horne_ in Book Duch. 376 as occurring in a petrified phrase. Cf. also _on a berne_, C 397; _of his lone_, D 1861; and, in particular, the curious instances in which the A.S. nom. has disappeared. Thus the A.S. _h[=i]w_ is always _hewe_ in Chaucer, in all cases; the A.S. _gr[=a]f_ is always _grove_; the A.S. _hol_ is _hole_; _sore_ in A 2743 is a nom. case; and so on.

s. 69. ARCHAISMS. The easiest way of understanding Chaucer's language is to remember that it is _archaic_; the use of the final _-e_ was fast disappearing, and he probably was anxious to retain it for the sake of metrical effect. He could not but have remarked its usefulness in Old French poetry; and his study of Italian must have led him to admire the frequency of the vowel-endings in that language. But the use of the English final _-e_ had become extremely uncertain, owing to the complete fusion of the nom. and acc., and the loss (to a large extent) of the dative, except in old phrases which contained (usually) some common preposition.

s. 70. THREE TYPES OF STRONG SUBSTANTIVES. If I may beg leave to offer my own view of the forms of Chaucer's substantives of the strong declensions, I should be inclined to explain his usages in the following way.

Let us put aside the weak declension, and the etymology of the A.S. words, and let us look at the actual forms of the singular nouns. And, since the genitive case, in Chaucer, usually has a form of its own, let us consider the nom., acc., and dative only.

All the representative words given in Sievers (A.S. Gram. s. 238, &c.) can be collected under a few general types, for the present purpose. The fem. sb. _giefu_ had the accus. _giefe_; but as _-u_ and _-e_ both became _-e_ at a later period, the nom. and acc. are, practically, alike.

Further, datives in _-a_, as _sun-a_, _feld-a_, became datives in _-e_, and may here be so considered. Hence, in very late A.S. and in Early English, we find, neglecting stems in _-r_, the few words which shew mutation in the dative, and others which do not affect the general result, the following uses.

1. Every dative case ends in _-e_.

2. Every accusative resembles either the nominative or the dative; if the latter, it ends in _-e_.

Hence, there are ONLY THREE main types, which we may illustrate by the words _d[=o]m_, _ende_, and _l[=a]r_. The A.S. _d[=o]m_ became M.E. _doom_, whilst the form _ende_ persisted without any change of spelling.

The A.S. _l[=a]r_ would, we should expect, become M.E. _loor_, which may here represent it, provisionally, for the present purpose (I substitute it for the type _[=a]r_ in Sievers, merely as being a commoner word). The resulting forms are, accordingly, these:--

A. B. C.
nom. acc. _end-e_ (nom. _loor_) nom. acc. _doom_
dat. _end-e_. dat. acc. _lor-e_. dat. _dom-e_.

A. As to this type, there could be no hesitation; all such words would naturally retain the final _-e_ for a considerable period. Examples appear in _ende_, end, and words declined like it, such as M.E. _herd-e_, herdsman, _l[=e]che_, physician, _wyte_, punishment; and numerous agential words in _-ere_, as _mill['e]re_, miller. Also in A.S. _giefu_, and words declined like it, such as M.E. _care_, care; _shame_, shame; _sake_, sake; _love_, love. Also in A.S. _wine_, _sife_, and words like them, such as M.E. _mete_, meat, _stede_, stead, _reye_, rye, _hate_, hate, _spere_, spear. Also in A.S. _sunu_, son, _wudu_, wood; M.E. _sone_, _wode_. Also in A.S. _duru_, door, _nosu_, nose; M.E. _dore_, _nose_.

B. In type B, we have a majority for the form _lor-e_; the Early E. nom. _loor_ gave way, and is seldom found, so that _lore_ became the standard type, in Chaucer, for nom., dat., and acc. alike.

Examples occur in A.S. _l[=a]r_, and words like it, as M.E. _fore_, journey, path, _halle_, hall, _sorwe_, sorrow, _stounde_, time, _wounde_, wound, _ore_, mercy. Also in A.S. _b[=e]n_, petition, and words like it, such as M.E. _quene_, queen; _hyde_, hide, skin; _tyde_, time; _dede_, deed.

C. In type C, the nom. and acc. combined against the dative form. Consequently, the monosyllabic form prevailed, in this instance only, for all cases. Nevertheless, the dative in _-e_ is not uncommon, owing, as has been said, to its preservation in particular phrases. Besides which, it occurs sporadically after some prepositions. It must be remembered that the dative form was once very common, owing to its use after some very common prepositions, such as _at_, _by_, _in_, _of_, _on_, _to_. Examples of the monosyllabic nominative occur in A.S. _d[=o]m_, and words declined like it, as M.E. _ooth_, oath, _ring_, _arm_ (of the body), _erl_, _mouth_, _dreem_, dream, _boon_, bone, _deer_, _fyr_, fire, _wyf_; _day_, _path_, _staf_, _ship_, _writ_, _shoo_. Also in A.S. _secg_, and words declined like it, as _net_, _bed_, _wed_. Also in A.S. _wyrm_, and words declined like it, as M.E. _deel_, deal, part, _gest_, guest, _hil_, _dint_, _loon_, loan, _wight_. Examples of datives occur in _a-fyre_, _to wyve_, _a-bedde_, _to wedde_, _lone_ (see Glossary).

If we thus consider the whole history, I think it becomes clear that the form of the dative in _-e_ is really of considerable importance. It occurs, of course, in type A; it helps to determine type B; and, even in type C, is not always suppressed.

s. 71. EFFECT OF ACCENT. I add two more notes before dismissing this part of the subject. One is, that such a word as _millere_ is only trisyllabic when accented on the penultimate, as in A 542. When accented on the _first_ syllable, the final _e_ is dropped in pronunciation, and some scribes drop it in the written form also; see A 545. There are many such instances in words of French origin. A large number of sbs. in _-ing_, derived from verbal roots, come under this rule. In the middle of the verse, the dissyllabic form is usual, as _yelding_, A 596, _woning_, A 606. But at the end of the line, the trisyllabic form occurs frequently, owing to the accent, especially in order to secure a rime with an infinitive mood. Thus in A 1616 we find _beddinge_, which rimes with _bringe_, and is accented on the _i_.

s. 72. DOUBLE FORMS. The other remark which I have to make here is, that double forms of a word are not uncommon in Anglo-Saxon; and we find double forms in M.E. corresponding to them. A notable instance occurs in the A.S. _gewil_, will, a strong sb., beside A.S. _willa_, will, a weak sb. Hence Chaucer has both _wil_ and _wille_; see the Glossarial Index.

s. 73. THE WEAK DECLENSION. The three A.S. types are _steorra_, star, masc.; _tunge_, tongue, fem.; and _[=e]age_, eye, neuter. In M.E., the genders were disregarded, and all three types became merged in one, with final _-e_. Hence Chaucer has _sterre_, star, _tonge_, tongue, _y[:e]_, eye; with one invariable form for the nom., acc., and dative.

A.S. WORDS IN -EN. A.S. words ending in _-en_ usually drop the _-n_ in M.E. Hence, in place of the A.S. _[=ae]fen_, Chaucer has _eve_; though _even_ also occurs. So also _game_ for A.S. _gamen_; _kinrede_, A.S. _cyn-r[=ae]den_; _mayde_, A.S. _maegden_; _morwe_, A.S. _morgen_.

s. 74. GENITIVE SINGULAR. The genitive almost invariably ends in _-es_[62], sometimes shortened to _-s_. Ex. _cherles_, _maydens_. A few old feminines in _-e_ occur occasionally; as _halle_, _helle_, _love_ (in the comp. _loveday_). A few genitives in _-e_ are due to the A.S. _-an_ of the weak declension; as _herte_, _sonne_, _cherche_, _widwe_. Here belongs _lady_ (short for _lady-e_). _Hevene_ occurs as well as _hevenes_. The gen. of _fader_, father, is both _fader_ and _fadres_.

s. 75. DATIVE SINGULAR. As explained above, the dative ends in _-e_, except for words of type C (s. 70). The accusative always resembles the nominative.

s. 76. PLURALS. The usual ending is _-es_ (also written _-is_) or _-s_; as _dayes_, _maydens_. The same ending is usually employed even for sbs. of the weak declension, where the A.S. suffix was _-an_. Only a few old weak plurals survive; as _oxen_, _pesen_, peas, _asshen_ (rarely _asshes_), _hosen_, _y[:e]n_, eyes, _foon_, foes, _toon_, toes, _been_, bees (seldom _bees_), _fleen_, fleas. We also find _kyn_, kine, _bretheren_, (never _brothers_), _doghtren_ and _doghtres_, _sustren_ and _sustres_. So also _children_.

Some words, originally neuter, remain unchanged in the plural; as _deer_, _folk_, _hors_, _neet_, _pound_, _sheep_, _swyn_; sometimes _thing_ (also _thinges_), _yeer_ (also _yeres_). So also _winter_. A few plurals shew mutation; as _feet_, _teeth_, _men_, _wommen_, _gees_, _mys_. _Breech_ is really an old plural; but Chaucer has the double plural _breches_ (I 330). _Monthe_ (B 1674) is an old genitive plural, after the numeral _twelf_. In _wyf_, pl. _wyves_, _f_ becomes _v_. In _ship_, pl. _shippes_, the _p_ is doubled, to shew that the vowel is short.

s. 77. SUBSTANTIVES OF FRENCH ORIGIN. Substantives of French origin take a genitive in _-es_ or _-s_, and remain unchanged in the dat. and accusative. The plural likewise ends in _-es_ or _-s_. The final _-e_ appears in a large number of words, such as _face_, _grace_, &c.; but is sometimes suppressed, even when etymologically correct, as in _fors_ for _force_, _sours_ for _source_, _beest_ for _beste_, _host_ for _hoste_, _princess_ for _princesse_[63]. In Sir Thopas, _plas_ occurs for _place_, and _gras_ for _grace_. Cf. vol. iv. p. xxxii.

In words like _nature_, _fortune_, _science_, the final _-e_ is sounded if the accent is on the second syllable, but is usually dropped if it falls on the first. The same usage prevails with regard to the plural suffix _-es_. Hence we find the plurals _fl['o]ur-es_, _['a]vent['u]r-es_ on the one hand, and _p['i]lour-s_, _l['a]zar-s_ on the other; and _p['i]lgrimes_ is pronounced as _pilgrims_. So also _a['u]ditours_, because the accent on _ou_ is only secondary. _Ep['i]stell[`e]s_ (B 55) is a 'learned' form. Words in _-nt_ usually have the plural in _-nts_, often written _-ntz_; as _tyraunts_ or _tyrauntz_. The A.F. _z_ had the sound of _ts_. A remarkable plural occurs in _org[`o]n_ or _org[`o][`o]n_ (cf. Lat. _organa_). Words in _s_ remain unchanged in the gen. sing. and in the pl. Thus _Bachus_, in Leg. 2376, is a gen. sing.; and _caas_, in A 323, is plural. The pl. of _advocat_ is _advocats_, with mute _t_, which might be written _advocaas_; and _condys_ (for _condyts_ with mute _t_) occurs as the pl. of _condyt_.

s. 78. ADJECTIVES. These occur both in the indefinite and in the definite form. The latter is known by its being preceded by the definite article, or a demonstrative or possessive pronoun, in which case it takes a final _-e_; as _the yonge_, _his halfe_, _this ilke_. Also when used in the vocative case, as _O strange god_, A 2373.

The indefinite form usually follows the A.S. type, and so depends upon the etymology. Hence we find, on the one hand, _blak_, _good_, _foul_; and, on the other, _sw[=e]te_, _gr[=e]ne_, _sh[=e]ne_, _k[=e]ne_, where the long _e_ is due to mutation in a _jo_-stem, and the final _-e_ represents a faint survival of that stem. So also _clene_ (with open long _e_), _dere_, _drye_, _blythe_; and even _softe_, _swote_ (without mutation). Other dissyllables are _fewe_, _newe_, _trewe_, _riche_, _sene_ (visible), _narwe_ (nar.u), _stille_, _thikke_, _wilde_. _Moche_ is due to loss of _l_ in _mochel_; so, perhaps, _lyte_ for _lytel_.

Several adjectives, however, occur in Chaucer with a final _-e_ in the indefinite form, contrary to the A.S. usage. Examples: _bare_, _fayre_, _fresshe_, _longe_, _tame_. So also _badde_, _meke_. In some cases, the final _-e_ may be due to old usage; thus, in B 50, we find _Of olde tyme_, A.S. _of ealdum t[=i]man_.

The plural of monosyllabic adjectives ends in _-e_. The same is the case with some of the pronouns and many of the cardinal numbers. Even monosyllabic past participles, when used adjectivally, may have a plural in _-e_, as: _with y[:e]n faste y-shette_; B 560[64]; _eres spradde_, T. iv. 1422; _bente_, T. iv. 40: indeed, we even find this plural form after the word _weren_, as in _weren fledde_, T. i. 463; _weren whette_, T. v. 1760. So too _y-mette_, B 1115.

But adjectives and participles of more than one syllable usually remain unaltered in the plural.

Ordinals and monosyllabic superlatives (few in number) have final _-e_ in the definite form; as _the firste_, _the thridde_, _the ferthe_, _the beste_, _the laste_, _the leste_, _the moste_, _the nexte_, _the werste_ (or _worste_).

Some adjectives of French origin take the French pl. suffix _-s_; as, _capitals_, _delitables_, _espirituels_, _temporeles_.

s. 79. COMPARATIVES. Comparatives usually end in _-er_, and remain unaltered when definite. _Better_ is sometimes written _bettre_. We also find the comparatives _lasse_, _lesse_, less; _worse_ or _wers_, worse; _more_, more, greater. _Bet_, better, is properly an adverb, but is also used as an adjective. _Mo_ is properly an adverb, but is also used as an adjective; usually, _mo_ means 'more in number,' as distinguished from _more_, meaning 'greater in size.' Mutation is seen in _elder_, _lenger_, _strenger_. _For-m-er_ is due to adding _-er_ to the stem of an old superlative, _for-m-a_.

s. 80. SUPERLATIVES. Superlatives usually end in _-est_, and remain unaltered when definite. We also find the superlatives _first_ (def. _firste_); _best_ (def. _beste_); _last_ (def. _laste_); _leest_ (def. _leeste_, _leste_); _most_ (def. _moste_); _next_ (def. _nexte_); _werst_ (def. _werste_, _worste_). Mutation is seen in _eldest_, _lengest_, _strengest_. _Ferrest_ is formed from the comp. adv. _ferre_. Note also the forms _hind-r-est_, _upp-er-est_, _utt-er-est_, _ov-er-est_. The old superl. _for-me_ (A.S. _for-ma_, Lat. _pri-mus_) occurs in the comp. sb. _forme-fader_; and hence the double superl. _for-m-est_.

If an accent falls on the suffix _-est_, the def. form may take final _-e_; but examples are rare. Yet we find _the seemlieste man_, _the uttereste preve_, _the wofulleste wight_.

s. 81. NUMERALS. The cardinal numbers are as follows. 'One' is _[`o][`o]n_, often _[`o][`o]_ or _[`o]_ before a consonant, whence the indef. article _an_, a. Hence also _al ones_, altogether of one accord, C 696; _for the nones_ = _for then ones_, for the once, for the nonce; also _aloon_, alone, more commonly _allone_. 'Two' is _tweye_ or _tweyne_, originally the masc. form; also _tw[=o]_, originally the fem. and neuter form. The other numbers are _three_, _foure_, _fyf_ or _fyve_, _six_, _sevene_, _eighte_, _nyne_, _ten_; &c. The ordinals are _firste_, _othere_ or _secounde_, _thridde_, _ferthe_ or _fourthe_, _fifte_, _sixte_, &c. Ten Brink remarks that the form _eightetethe_ is unauthorised, and that it should be _eightetenthe_; but this is a mistake; see vol. v. p. 134.

s. 82. PRONOUNS. The first pers. pron. is _I_, dat. and acc. _me_; pl. _we_; dat. and acc. _us_. For _I_, we also find the Northern _ik_, not only in the Reves Tale, but in the compound _theek_ = _thee ik_. Also, the Southern _ich_, rarely, both alone and in the compound _theech_ = _thee ich_. The gen. pl. _our_ occurs in _our aller_, of us all; A 823.

The second pers. pron. is _thou_, _thow_, dat. and acc. _thee_; pl. _ye_, dat. and acc. _you_. _Thou_ is often appended to verbs, in the form _tow_; as in _shaltow_, _wiltow_, &c.

The third pers. pron. masc. is _he_, dat. and acc. _him_; pl. _they_, gen. _hir_ (as in _hir aller_), dat. and acc. _hem_ (never _them_), for all genders. The fem. form is _she_, dat. and acc. _hir_ or _hire_, also _h[`e]re_ at the end of a line or at the caesura (see Glossary). The neut. form is _hit_ or _it_, dat. _him_; acc. _hit_ or _it_.

s. 83. POSSESSIVES. The forms are: _myn_, _my_; _thyn_, _thy_; _his_[65] (masc. and neut.), _hire_, _hir_, _here_ (fem.); _oure_, _our_; _youre_, _your_; _hire_, _here_, _hir_, _her_ = their. The Northern form _thair_ is purposely introduced in A 4172. When standing alone, we also find _oure_, _oures_, ours; _youre_, _youres_, yours; _hires_, hers; _hirs_, theirs.

s. 84. DEMONSTRATIVES. _The_ is used for the def. article in all genders and in both numbers. A trace of the old dat. _then_ (A.S. _dh[=a]m_) occurs in _for the nones_ (= _for then ones_). _Atte_ = _at the_.

The demonstratives are _that_; pl. _tho_, those; and _this_, pl. _thise_. Note that _thise_ (dhiiz) is always monosyllabic; the final _e_ merely marks (probably) a longer vowel-sound. It is probable that, in the same way, the form _hise_, his, used with plurals, may have meant (hiiz); the Cambridge MS. has the curious form _hese_; but it is monosyllabic.

s. 85. INTERROGATIVES. These are: _who_, _what_; gen. _whoos_, _wh[=o]s;_ dat. _wh[=o]m_; acc. _wh[=o]m_, _what_. Also _which_; pl. _whiche_, _which_. Also _whether_, which of the two.

s. 86. RELATIVES. _That_ is used generally; also _which_, pl. _whiche_, _which_. _Whos_ occurs as expressing a genitive; and _whom_ for a dative; but we never find _who_ as a nominative. We also meet with _that-he_ for 'who'; _that-his_ for 'whose'; _that-him_ for 'whom'; cf. A 2710. Also _the which_; or, when used adjectivally, _the whiche_ (A 3923); _which that_; _the which that_; _who that_, _what that_; _who so_, _what so_.

s. 87. OTHER PRONOMINAL FORMS. _Men_ sometimes occurs as a weakened form of _man_, with the sense of mod. E. 'one'; and it therefore takes a singular verb. Ex. _men smoot_, one smote, A 149; _men moot_, one must, one ought to, A 232. _Self_ is used adjectivally, as in _Thy selve neighebour_, B 115. Hence also _myself_, _myselven_, _myselve_; _thyself_, _thyselven_, _thyselve_; _hemself_, themselves, _hemselven_, _hemselve_. _Thilke_, a def. form, means 'that'; we also find _this ilke_, _that ilke_; cf. A 721. _Swich_, such; pl. _swiche_, _swich_. _Oon_, _oo_, one; _noon_, _non_, none; _other_; _any_. _Som_, pl. _som_, _some_, _somme_; the plural is written all three ways, but is usually monosyllabic. _Al_, _alle_, _all_; a word causing some difficulty, being very often written _alle_, though very seldom dissyllabic. The gen. _aller_ occurs, both alone and in compounds. _Aught_, _ought_, _oght_; _naught_, _nought_, _noght_. _Either_, gen. _eith(e)res_; _neither_, gen. _neith(e)res_.

For 'each,' we find _[=e]ch_ (aech), reduced to _ich_ or _y_ in the compound _everich_, _every_; cf. _everichoon_, every one. _Many_ is used alone; also in _many oon_, _many on_, _many a_.

s. 88. VERBS.

Verbs are distinguished as being weak or strong. In the former, the pp. (past participle) ends in _-ed_, _-d_, or _-t_; in the latter, it ends in _-en_ or _-e_.

A simple rule is to observe that, in weak verbs, a final _-e_ is common in the past tense, but never ends a pp. unless it is used as a plural adjective; conversely, in strong verbs, it is common (varying with _-en_) in the pp., but never occurs in the pt. t. _singular_. The frequent disregard of this usage is a great blemish in Tyrwhitt's edition of the Canterbury Tales.

s. 89. The general formulae for the conjugation of verbs are as follows.

PRESENT TENSE. Singular: 1. _-e_; 2. _-est_, _-st_; 3. _-eth_, _-th_ (or a contracted form). Plural: _-en_, _-n_, _-e_; for all persons. In the 3rd pers. singular, _-eth_ is often sounded as _-th_, even when _-eth_ is fully written. We also find contracted forms, as in A.S.; such as _rit_, rideth; _hit_, hideth; _sit_, sitteth; _bit_, biddeth; _slit_, slideth; _writ_, writeth; _stant_, standeth; _fint_, findeth; _et_, eateth; _set_, setteth. In all these instances the stem or root of the verb ends in _d_ or _t_. Besides these, we find _rist_, riseth; _worth_ for _wortheth_, becomes; and the curious form _wryth_, writheth, T. iii. 1231. In the very same line _Bitrent_ is short for _Bitrendeth_. In the 2 pers. sing. _-est_ is often _-st_, even when written in full; in the pl., _-en_ may be reduced to _-n_, as in _seyn_, say, or else to _-e_, as in _sey-e_.

PAST TENSE OF STRONG VERBS. Singular: 1. 3. no suffix; 2. _-e_, occasionally, but usually dropped. Plural: 1. 2. 3. _-en_, _-e_.

PAST TENSE OF WEAK VERBS. Singular: 1. 3. _-ede_, _-ed_, _-de_, _-te_; 2. _-edest_, _-dest_, _-test_. Plural: 1. 2. 3. _-eden_, _-den_, _-ten_; _-ede_, _-de_, _-te_, also _-ed_ (occasionally).

SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD: PRESENT. Singular: 1. 2. 3. _-e_. Plural: _-en_, _-e_. PAST (STRONG VERBS); suffixes as in the present subjunctive. PAST (WEAK VERBS); like the past tense of the indicative; but _-st_ may be dropped in the second pers. singular.

IMPERATIVE MOOD. Singular: 2 pers. (no suffix, usually); _-e_ (in some weak verbs). Plural: 2 pers. _-eth_, _-th_, sometimes _-e_[66]. The rest of the Mood is supplied from the subjunctive.

INFINITIVE: _-en_, (often) _-e_. The gerundial infinitive, preceded by the prep, _to_, and usually expressive of purpose, has a special form only in a very few instances, as _to bene_, to be; _to done_, to do; _to sene_, to see, A 1035; _to seyne_, to say; for which _to doon_, _to seen_ or _to see_, _to seyn_ or _to seye_, also occur. In other verbs, it does not differ from the ordinary infinitive. The true infinitive occurs without the prep. _to_, and remains in mod. E. in such expressions as _I can sing_, _I might go_.

PARTICIPLES. Present: _-inge_, _-ing_. The fuller form in _-inge_ is rare, being chiefly employed, for the rime, at the end of a line, as _gliteringe_, A 2890; _thunderinge_, A 2174; _flikeringe_, A 1962.

NOTE. The pres. part. is not to be confounded with the sb. of verbal origin. Thus _singinge_, _floytinge_ (A 91), _whistling_ (A 170), are present participles; but _priking_, _hunting_ (A 191), _winning_ (A 275), _lerninge_ (A 300), _teching_ (A 518) are substantives. The pl. sb. _rekeninges_ occurs in A 760.

PAST PARTICIPLES. The pp. of weak verbs ends in _-ed_, _-d_, or _-t_; and that of strong verbs in _-en_, _-n_, _-e_. The prefix _y-_ (i), representing the A.S. _ge-_ (_ye-_), often occurs with past participles; as in _y-ronne_, A 8, from A.S. _gerunnen_. The same prefix occurs, very rarely, before an infinitive; as in _y-finde_, _y-here_, _y-knowe_, _y-see_, _y-thee_. It also appears in the adj. _y-sene_ (A.S. _ges[=e]ne_), which has often been mistaken for a pp. But the pp. of _see_ is _y-seyn_ or _y-seye_.

s. 90. SEVEN CONJUGATIONS OF STRONG VERBS. Strong verbs usually exhibit a vowel-change (gradation) in the stem, as in the mod. E. _sing_, _sang_, _sung_.

There are seven conjugations, corresponding to the types of the verbs _drive_, _choose_, _drink_, _bear_, _give_, _shake_, _fall_. See Sievers, A.S. Grammar.

The 'principal parts' of strong verbs are (_a_) the infinitive (which has the primary grade); (_b_) the past tense singular (which has the middle grade); (_c_) the past tense plural (which in A.S. usually differs, as to its vowel, from the singular); and (_d_) the pp. In strict grammar, the 2 p. s. of the pt. t. has the same vowel as the pp. Thus _biginne_ has the pp. _bigonnen_, and the 2 p. s. pt. t. is _bigonne_, thou didst begin, without any final _-st_.

1. Infin. _dryven_ (driiv[*e]n); Pt. s. _dr[`o][`o]f_, _dr[`o]f_ (draof); Pt. pl. _driven_ (driv[*e]n); Pp. _driven_ (driv[*e]n).

Thus the characteristic vowels are: _y_ (ii); _[`o][`o]_ (ao); _i_; _i_. So are conjugated _abyden_ or _abyde_, _agryse_, _aryse_, _byde_, _byte_, _glyde_, _ryde_, _ryse_, _ryve_, _shyne_, _shryve_, _slyde_, _smyte_, _(be)stryde_, _stryke_, _thryve_, _wryte_, _wrythe_[67]. Chaucer also treats _stryve_ as a strong verb, though it was originally weak; with pt. t. _str[`o][`o]f_, pp. _striven_. To this conjugation belongs _wryen_, to hide, put for _wr[=i]hen_; hence the pp. would be _wr[)i]h-en_, which appears in Chaucer as _wryen_.

2. Infin. _ch[=e]sen_ (cheez[*e]n); Pt. s. _ch[`e][`e]s_ (chaes); Pt. pl. _ch[=o]sen_ (chao.z[*e]n); Pp. _ch[=o]sen_ (chao.z[*e]n).

Here the vowel of the pp. has been lengthened, and the vowel of the pt. pl. assimilated to that of the pp. So are conjugated: _b[=e]den_, to offer; _brewen_ or _brewe_ (pt. t. _brew_), _cleve_, to slit, _crepe_, _flee_ (pt. t. _fleigh_, _fley_), _flete_, to float, _flye_, to fly (pt. t. _fleigh_, _fley_, pl. and pp. _flowen_), _lese_, to lose (pp. _loren_, _lorn_), _lye_, to tell lies, _sethe_, to boil (pt. t. _s[`e][`e]th_, pp. _s[)o]den_), _shete_, to shoot (pp. _sh[)o]ten_).

Here belong a few verbs with _ou_ (uu) in the infinitive; as _brouke_, _shouven_, to shove (pt. t. _sh[`o][`o]f_, pp. _sh[)o]ven_). Also the pp. _l[)o]ken_, as if from _louken_.

3. In this class there are two sets: (_a_) verbs in which the radical _e_ is preserved, as _swelle_; (_b_) those in which _e_ becomes _i_ before _m_ or _n_, as _drinke_.

(_a_) Infin. _swellen_; Pt. s. _swal_; Pt. pl. _swollen_; Pp. _swollen_. So are conjugated: _bresten_ or _breste_, _delve_, _fighte_ (originally _feghte_; pt. s. _faught_, pt. pl. and pp. _foughten_), _helpe_, _kerve_, _melte_, _sterve_, _thresshe_, _yelde_, _yelpe_. Here belongs _worthen_ (originally _werthe_); the pt. t. and pp. do not occur. _Abreyde_ was also originally a strong verb, and Chaucer twice uses the pt. t. _abrayd_ or _abreyd_, riming with the pp. _sayd_ or _seyd_; but it was easily confused with weak verbs that made the pt. t. in _-de_, and in all other places appears as a weak verb. It was already obsolescent.

(_b_) Infin. _drinken_; Pt. s. _drank_[68]; Pt. pl. _dronken_ (drung.k[*e]n); Pp. _dronken_ (drung.k[*e]n).

So are conjugated: _biginnen_ or _biginne_, _binde_, _climbe_ (pt. s. _clomb_), _finde_ (pt. s. _fond_, pt. pl. and pp. _founden_), _ginne_, _grinde_ (pp. _grounden_), _ringe_, _renne_ ( = _rinne_), _shrinke_, _singe_ (pt. s. _song_), _sinke_, _slinge_ (pt. _slong_), _spinne_, _springe_ (pt. s. _sprong_), _stinge_ (pt. s. _stong_), _stinke_, _swimme_, _swinke_, _thringe_ (pt. s. _throng_), _winde_ (pt. s. _wond_, pp. _wounden_), _winne_, _wringe_ (pt. s. _wrong_).

4. Infin. _beren_; Pt. s. _bar_ (also _ber_, _beer_); Pt. pl. _b[=e]ren_; Pp. _boren_, _bore_, _born_. Confused in M.E. with conj. 5. So also: _breken_ or _breke_, _shere_, _speke_, _stele_, _tere_ (cf. pt. s. _to-tar_), _trede_, _wreke_. Here belongs pt. s. _nam_, pp. _nomen_, as if from an infin. _nemen_, which became _nimen_. Also _come_, pt. s. _cam_ (also _coom_), pt. pl. _camen_ (also _c[=o]men_), pp. _comen_ (kum.[*e]n).

5. Infin. _yeven_, _yeve_, and frequently _yive_; Pt. s. _yaf_; Pt. pl. _yaven_ (more correctly _y[=e]ven_); Pp. _yeven_, and frequently _yiven_. Here belong _eten_ or _ete_ (pt. s. _eet_, pp. _eten_), _forgete_, _gete_, _mete_, to mete, _steke_ (pt. s. _stak_), _weve_ (pt. s. _waf_, pp. _woven_); also _bidde_, _sitte_ (pt. s. _sat_, _seet_, pt. pl. _s[=e]ten_), _ligge_ or _lye_ (pt. s. _lay_, pt. pl. _layen_). Here belongs _quethen_, to say, which only appears in the pt. s. _quoth_ or _quod_. Also _seen_, to see, pp. _y-seyn_, _y-seye_, with various forms of the pt. s., as _seigh_, _sey_, _say_, _sy_, _saugh_, _saw_. The verbs _speke_, _trede_, _wreke_, have gone over to conj. 4; and the same might be said of _weve_.

6. Infin. _shaken_; Pt. t. _sh['o]['o]k_; Pt. pl. _shooken_; Pp. _shaken_, _shake_.