SH AKESPEARI AN GRAMMAR. AN ATTEMPT TO ILLUSTRATE SOME OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ELIZABETHAN AND MODERN ENGLISH. ^or i\t Sftst of SStjjools. BY E. A. ABBOTT, MA. HEAD MASTER OF THE CITY OF LONDON SCHOOL, FORMERLY FELLOW OF ST. John's COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE. REVISED AND ENLARGED EDITION, MACMILLAN AND CO. 1870. [The Right of Translation and Reproduction is reserved.] LONDON : R. CLAY, SONS, AND TAYLOR, PRINTERS, BREAD STREET HILL. * CONTEXTS. PACK Preface to Third Edition xxi Preface to First Edition' I Introduction- 5 GRAMMAR. P VR Adjectives used as adverbs 1 compounded 2 in -ful, -less, -ble, and -ive, both actively and passively used 3 signifying effect used to signify cause 4 singular used as nouns 5 'comparative, -er, more 6 ,, in -er, after -ing, -ed, -id, -ain, -st, -ect , . 7 ' superlative, -est used for very 8 , , in -est after -ent, -ing, -cd, -ect 9 „ used incorrectly for the comparative ... 10 f comparative and superlative, pleonastically used .... 11 f All, both, each, every, other 12 possessive transposed 13 Just; mere ; proper, very; influenced by their Latin meaning 14-16 More, most, used for greater, greatest 17 O/ie 18 Right used for true 1 9 ,-Self 20 Some 21 formed from nouns, adverbs, &c., without change ... 22 17830 CONTENTS. PAR. Advkrbs with and without -ly 23 S with prefix a- 24 r derived from the possessive inflection 25 After; again; all; almost 26-29 Along; anon; anything; away; back 30_33 ^ Besides ; briefly ; b% ; chance ; even ; ever 34~ 39 Far ; forth ; hence; hither 40-41 Happily; here; hitherto; home; how; howsoever . 42-47 Last; moreabove ; moreover 48-50 y Much; never ; rigpe; not S1~54 Nothing; off; once; only ; over 55 58 s- Presently ; round; severally; since 59-02 So inserted ; omitted; = "also;" — "then" . 63-66 , So for "such a" 67 , Something ; sometimes; still; than; then 68-71 Vj^i " ^To-fore ; too ; what, when; whilst; why ; yet . 12.~"]d ^ used as nouns and adjectives 77 / after the verb is 78 A k ncLE. An connected with one 79 An and one, pronunciation of 80 A used for " one," " any " 81 A and the omitted in archaic poetry S2 ,, ,, after "as," "like," "than" .... 83 A omitted before nouns signifying a class or a multitude . 84 srA inserted after adjectives used as adverbs 85 A omitted after "what," "sucli," &c 86 J A inserted before numeral adjectives and many .... 87 Au-other 88 The omitted before nouns defmed by other nouns So. — ,, after prepositions 90 The inserted in " at the first," &c 91 The used to denote notoriety, &c 92 S The before verbals 93 CONTENTS. vii Ml. The with comparatives 94 Conjunctions. And emphatic with participles 95 And emphatic in other cases 96 ,, in answers 97 ,, after exclamations 98 ,, in questions 99 And used for "also" by Wickliffe 100 / And or an apparently used for if 101 s „ with the subjunctive 102 j And if 103 Ant were 104 And //'used for " even if" and " if indeed " 105 /.As contracted for " all-so " ... 106 As apparently for " as if" 107 As that {ol as 108 As used for "that " after " so " 109 As parenthetical = "for so" 110 , , "as regards which, " &c ill As for " which " 112 As, meaning "namely" 113 As with definitions of time 114 As with "seem," participles, &c 1 15 As a conjunctional suffix 116 Because 117 /? But, meaning and derivation of 118 But in Early English 119 But with the subjunctive and indicative 120 But, transition of meaning ..121 But meaning prevention 122 But taking the place of the subject 123 /.But with contingency expressed or implied 124 But sometimes ambiguous 125 But after an execration expressed or implied 126 viii CONTENTS. PAK. But for " than " after negative comparatives 127 But passes from " except " to "only " when the negative is omitted 128 , But varies in its position 129 But only ;. merely but, &c 13° y Or ; or ever 131 Since for "when," "ago-" 132 So =" provided that ;" so with the optative .... 133 Where for "whereas" 134 Whereas for " where " 135 S Whether : " or whether" 136 t While 137 Prepositions. Local and metaphorical meaning . .138 more restricted in meaning now than in Elizabethan authors 139 A- ; after; against 140-142 At used for a-; rejects a following adjective . 143, 144 By, original and derived meanings 145 By = " as a consequence of " 146 For, original meaning of 147 For = " instead of," "as being " 148 For— "as regards ;" "because of," referring to the past 149, 150 For, transition into a conjunction 151 For to, origin of .152 For,, variable use of 153 For — "to prevent" 154 For after " am " 155 Forth a preposition 156 From out 157 From without a verb of motion 158 In with verbs of motion 159 In {or "on" 160 ,, "during" 161 „ " in the case of, "" about " 162 CONTENTS. ix PAR. In where we use " at " 163 S In with the verbal 164 Of, original meaning 165 Of with verbs of ablation 166 Of applied to past time = "from" 167 f Of — "as a consequence of" where we use "by," "on," " at," &c 168 Of in adjurations, &c 169 Of preceding the agent 170 Of with verbs of construction, &c. ; sometimes means "instead of" 171 Of {or "in;" appositional genitive 172 0/= "as regards" 173 Of = "concerning;" "about" 174 Of used locally for " on " 175 Of used temporally for " during " 176 S Of after partitive, French-derived, and formerly impersonal verbs 177 Of after verbals 178 Of redundant 179 On metaphorically used 180 On for "of" in the sense of "about," &c 181 4 ,, possessively 182 j Out a preposition 183 Till for "to" .' ... 184 To, radical meaning "motion to ;" hence I 'in addition to " 1 85 To " with a view to " I 186 To " motion to the side of, " "against," "towards," "in comparison with," " up to" 187 To with verbs of rest = " near " 1S8 ,, adjectives of obedience, &c i88<7 ^ To — " equivalent to, "" for " 189 To; " I would to God ; " "to-night" 19° x CONTENTS. PAR. Upon used metaphorically ; adverbially .... 191, 192 W%Afor"by;" for other prepositions .... 193, 194 ,, "like;" withal 195, 196 Without for " outside of " 197 Preposition omitted after verbs of motion; worth; and hearing .... 198, 198a, 199 ,, ,, after other verbs ; before indirect object 200, 201 ,, ,, in adverbial phrases 202 ^ Prepositions transposed 203 Upon. " It stands me upon " 204 <r- Pronouns, Personal. Anomalies, explanation of . 205 He for him 206, 207 Him for he ; I {or me 208, 209 Me{or I; she for her 210, 21 1 •» Thee for thou ; after " to be " 212, 213 Them for they ; us for we 214, 215 anomalies of, between a conjunction and an infinitive, or where the pronouns are separated from the words on which they depend 216 His {ot's 217 His, her, your, &c., antecedents of relatives 218 Our, your, &c., used for " of us," " of you " 219 ^Me, thee, him, &c., used as datives 220 Your, colloquial use of 221 dur used with vocatives 222 Him, her, &c., for "himself," "herself" 223 He and she for " man " and " woman " 224 Pronoun for pronominal adjective 225 It quasi-redundant with verbs 226 It emphatic as antecedent 227 ^ Its post-Shakespearian 228 / Her for its in Shakespeare and Milton 229 CONTENTS. PAR Me rather had ; " "/ were better ; " "/am sorrow" . 230 f Thou between intimate friends, but not from son to father. 231 ^ Thou from master to servant, you a mark of anger . 232 Thou an insult, except to friends and inferiors .... 233 Thou in direct appeals, you in dependent clauses . 234 / Thou, apparent exceptions 235 y Ye and you ; difference between 236 My, mine ; thy, thine ; difference between 237 * Mine, hers, used for my, her 238 Yours; " this of yo urs " 239 . transposed 240 Thou omitted 241 Pronoun redundant after a conjunctional clause .... 242 ,, in other cases 243 Pronouns, Relative and Interrogative. ^ Relative omitted 244 ,, ,, " They in France " 245 ,, ,, and attracted 246 y Relative with plural antecedent often takes singular verb ; and with antecedent in the second person, takes verb in the third 247 /. Relative with supplementary pronoun ; origin of .... 248 Supplementary pronoun ; when used 249 Which that 250 Who ; transition from interrogative to relative meaning . 251 What; semi-transition, how checked 252 What for " why ; " "whatever;" "who;" "any" 253-251; What for " of what a nature ? " 256 Who, " as who should say " 257 Who, that, and which, difference between 258 / ,, ,, Shakespearian use of 259 That refers to an essential characteristic 260 That after nouns used vocatively 261 xii CONTENTS. TAR. That, when separated from antecedent 262 Who, for "and he," "for he," &c 263 Who personifies irrational antecedents 264 ^Which interchanged with who and that 265 y Which less definite than who 266 The— that ; that — which 267 Which more definite than that 268 Which with repeated antecedent 269 The which 270 Which parenthetically for "which thing" 271 Which for "as to which " 272 Which, anomalies of 273 Who for whom 274 Relatival Constructions. "So — as:" "as— as" . 275,276 " That— that; " "that . (as) to; " " such— which " 277, 278 "Such — that;" "such — where" 279 "That—as;""so...(as)" 280,281 "So-(that);" "(so)— that" 282, 283 That for "because," "when," &c 284 That omitted, then inserted 285 That, " whatsoever that " 286 That, a conjunctional affix 287 That in 287, origin of 288 As, a conjunctional affix 289 Verbs, Forms of : — / Transitive, mostly formed from adjectives and nouns . 290 p ,, formed from intransitive verbs 291 Advantages of this licence 292 Transitive verbs rarely used intransitively 293 x Passive, formation of 294 Passive, use of, with verbs of motion, &c 295 Reflexive 296 >.