The Grammar of English Grammars Part 72

_Singular_. _Plural_.

1. I may be loved, 1. We may be loved, 2. Thou mayst be loved, 2. You may be loved, 3. He may be loved; 3. They may be loved.

IMPERFECT TENSE.

_Singular_. _Plural_.

1. I might be loved, 1. We might be loved, 2. Thou mightst be loved, 2. You might be loved, 3. He might be loved; 3. They might be loved.

PERFECT TENSE.

_Singular_. _Plural_.

1. I may have been loved, 1. We may have been loved, 2. Thou mayst have been loved, 2. You may have been loved, 3. He may have been loved; 3. They may have been loved.

PLUPERFECT TENSE.

_Singular_. _Plural_.

1. I might have been loved, 1. We might have been loved, 2. Thou mightst have been loved, 2. You might have been loved, 3. He might have been loved; 3. They might have been loved.

SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD.

PRESENT TENSE.

_Singular_. _Plural_.

1. If I be loved, 1. If we be loved, 2. If thou be loved, 2. If you be loved, 3. If he be loved; 3. If they be loved.

IMPERFECT TENSE.

_Singular_. _Plural_.

1. If I were loved, 1. If we were loved, 2. If thou were loved, 2. If you were loved, 3. If he were loved; 3. If they were loved.

IMPERATIVE MOOD.

PRESENT TENSE.

_Singular_. 2. Be [thou] loved, _or_ Do thou be loved; _Plural_. 2. Be [ye or you] loved, _or_ Do you be loved.

PARTICIPLES.

1. _The Imperfect_. 2. _The Perfect_. 3. _The Preperfect_.

Being loved. Loved. Having been loved.

FAMILIAR FORM WITH 'THOU.' NOTE.--In the familiar style, the second person singular of this verb, is usually and more properly formed thus: IND. Thou art loved, Thou was loved, Thou hast been loved, Thou had been loved, Thou shall or will be loved, Thou shall or will have been loved. POT. Thou may, can, _or_ must be loved; Thou might, could, would, _or_ should be loved; Thou may, can, _or_ must have been loved; Thou might, could, would, _or_ should have been loved. SUBJ. If thou be loved, If thou were loved. IMP. Be [thou] loved, or Do thou be loved.

OBSERVATIONS.

OBS. 1.--A few active-intransitive verbs, that signify mere motion, change of place, or change of condition, may be put into this form, with a _neuter_ signification; making not _pa.s.sive_ but _neuter_ verbs, which express nothing more than the state which results from the change: as, "_I am come_."--"She _is gone_."--"He _is risen_."--"They _are fallen_." These are what Dr. Johnson and some others call "_neuter_ pa.s.sives;" a name which never was very proper, and for which we have no frequent use.

OBS. 2.--Most neuter verbs of the pa.s.sive form, such as, "_am grown, art become, is lain, are flown, are vanished, are departed, was sat, were arrived_," may now be considered errors of conjugation, or perhaps of syntax. In the verb, _to be mistaken_, there is an irregularity which ought to be particularly noticed. When applied to _persons_, this verb is commonly taken in a _neuter_ sense, and signifies, _to be in error, to be wrong_; as, "I _am mistaken_, thou _art mistaken_, he _is mistake_." But, when used of _things_, it is a proper pa.s.sive verb, and signifies, _to be misunderstood_, or _to be taken wrong_; as, "The sense of the pa.s.sage _is mistaken_; that is, not rightly understood." See _Webster's Dict., w.

Mistaken_. "I have known a shadow across a brook _to be mistaken_ for a footbridge."

OBS. 3.--Pa.s.sive verbs may be easily distinguished from neuter verbs of the same form, by a reference to the agent or instrument, common to the former cla.s.s, but not to the latter. This frequently is, and always may be, expressed after _pa.s.sive_ verbs; but never is, and never can be, expressed after _neuter_ verbs: as, "The thief has been caught _by the officer_."-- "Pens are made _with a knife_." Here the verbs are pa.s.sive; but, "_I am not yet ascended_," (John, xx, 17,) is not pa.s.sive, because it does not convey the idea of being ascended _by_ some one's agency.

OBS. 4.--Our ancient writers, after the manner of the French, very frequently employed this mode of conjugation in a neuter sense; but, with a very few exceptions, present usage is clearly in favour of the auxiliary _have_ in preference to _be_, whenever the verb formed with the perfect participle is not pa.s.sive; as, "They _have_ arrived,"--not, "They _are_ arrived." Hence such examples as the following, are not now good English: "All these reasons _are_ now ceased."--_Butler's a.n.a.logy_, p. 157. Say, "_have now_ ceased." "Whether he _were_ not got beyond the reach of his faculties."--_Ib._, p. 158. Say, "_had_ not got." "Which _is_ now grown wholly obsolete."--_Churchill's Gram._, p. 330. Say, "_has_ now grown."

"And when he _was_ entered into a s.h.i.+p."--_Bible_. Say, "_had_ entered."-- "What _is_ become of decency and virtue?"--_Murray's Key_, p. 196. Say, "_has_ become."

OBS. 5.--Dr. Priestley says, "It seems _not to have been determined_ by the English grammarians, whether the _pa.s.sive_ participles of verbs neuter require the auxiliary _am_ or _have_ before them. The French, in this case, confine themselves strictly to the former. 'What _has become_ of national liberty?' Hume's History, Vol. 6. p. 254. The French would say, _what is become_; and, in this instance, perhaps, with more propriety."-- _Priestley's Gram._, p. 128. It is no marvel that those writers who have not rightly made up their minds upon this point of English grammar, should consequently fall into many mistakes. The perfect participle of a neuter verb is not "_pa.s.sive_," as the doctor seems to suppose it to be; and the mode of conjugation which he here inclines to prefer, is a mere _Gallicism_, which is fast wearing out from our language, and is even now but little countenanced by good writers.

OBS. 6.--There are a few verbs of the pa.s.sive form which seem to imply that a person's own mind is the agent that actuates him; as, "The editor _is rejoiced_ to think," &c.--_Juvenile Keepsake_. "I _am resolved_ what to do."--_Luke_, xvi, 4. "He _was resolved_ on going to the city to reside."--_Comly's Gram._, p. 114. "James _was resolved_ not to indulge himself."--_Murray's Key_, ii, 220. "He _is inclined_ to go."--"He _is determined_ to go."--"He _is bent_ on going." These are properly pa.s.sive verbs, notwithstanding there are active forms which are nearly equivalent to most of them; as, "The editor _rejoices_ to think."--"I _know_ what to do."--"He _had resolved_ on going."--"James _resolved_ not to indulge himself." So in the phrase, "I _am ashamed_ to beg," we seem to have a pa.s.sive verb of this sort; but, the verb _to ashame_ being now obsolete, _ashamed_ is commonly reckoned an _adjective_. Yet we cannot put it before a noun, after the usual manner of adjectives. _To be indebted_, is an other expression of the same kind. In the following example, "_am remember'd_" is used for _do remember_, and, in my opinion, _inaccurately_:

"He said mine eyes were black, and my hair black; And, now I _am remember'd_, scorn'd at me."--_Shakspeare_.

IV. FORM OF NEGATION.

A verb is conjugated _negatively_, by placing the adverb _not_ after it, or after the first auxiliary; but the infinitive and participles take the negative first: as, Not to love, Not to have loved; Not loving, Not loved, Not having loved.

FIRST PERSON SINGULAR.

IND. I love not, _or_ I do not love; I loved not, _or_ I did not love; I have not loved; I had not loved; I shall not, _or_ will not, love; I shall not, _or_ will not, have loved. POT. I may, can, _or_ must not love; I might, could, would, _or_ should not love; I may, can, _or_ must not have loved; I might, could, would, _or_ should not have loved, SUBJ. If I love not, If I loved not.

SECOND PERSON SINGULAR.

SOLEMN STYLE:--IND. Thou lovest not, _or_ Thou dost not love; Thou lovedst not, _or_ Thou didst not love; Thou hast not loved; Thou hadst not loved; Thou shalt not, _or_ wilt not, love; Thou shalt not, _or_ wilt not, have loved. POT. Thou mayst, canst, _or_ must not love; Thou mightst, couldst, wouldst, _or_ shouldst not love; Thou mayst, canst, _or_ must not have loved; Thou mightst, couldst, wouldst, _or_ shouldst not have loved. SUBJ.

If thou love not, If thou loved not. IMP. Love [thou] not, _or_ Do thou not love.

FAMILIAR STYLE:--IND. Thou lov'st not, _or_ Thou dost not love; Thou loved not, _or_ Thou did not love; Thou hast not loved; Thou had not loved; Thou shall not, _or_ will not, love; Thou shall not, _or_ will not, have loved.

POT. Thou may, can, _or_ must not love; Thou might, could, would, _or_ should not love; Thou may, can, _or_ must not have loved; Thou might, could, would, _or_ should not have loved. SUBJ. If thou love not, If thou loved not. IMP. Love [thou] not, _or_ Do [thou] not love.

THIRD PERSON SINGULAR.

IND. He loves not, _or_ He does not love; He loved not, _or_ He did not love; He has not loved; He had not loved; He shall not, _or_ will not, love; He shall not, _or_ will not, have loved. POT. He may, can, _or_ must not love; He might, could, would, _or_ should not love; He may, can, _or_ must not have loved; He might, could, would, _or_ should not have loved.

SUBJ. If he love not, If he loved not.

V. FORM OF QUESTION.

A verb is conjugated _interrogatively_, in the indicative and potential moods, by placing the nominative after it, or after the first auxiliary: as,

FIRST PERSON SINGULAR.

IND. Love I? _or_ Do I love? Loved I? _or_ Did I love? Have I loved? Had I loved? Shall I love? Shall I have loved? POT. May, can, _or_ must I love?

Might, could, would, _or_ should I love? May, can, _or_ must I have loved?

Might, could, would, _or_ should I have loved?

SECOND PERSON SINGULAR.

SOLEMN STYLE:--IND. Lovest thou? _or_ Dost thou love? Lovedst thou? _or_ Didst thou love? Hast thou loved? Hadst thou loved? Wilt thou love? Wilt thou have loved? POT. Mayst, canst, _or_ must thou love? Mightst, couldst, wouldst, _or_ shouldst thou love? Mayst, canst, _or_ must thou have loved?

Mightst, couldst, wouldst, _or_ shouldst thou have loved?

FAMILIAR STYLE:--IND. Lov'st thou? _or_ Dost thou love? Loved thou? _or_ Did thou love? Hast thou loved? Had thou loved? Will thou love? Will thou have loved? POT. May, can, _or_ must thou love? Might, could, would, _or_ should thou love? May, can, _or_ must thou have loved? Might, could, would, _or_ should thou have loved?

THIRD PERSON SINGULAR.