CHAPTER XI.

THE CONSONANT DECLENSIONS OF NOUNS.

#The Weak or _n-_Declension.#

63. The n-Declension contains almost all of the O.E. nouns belonging to the Consonant Declensions. The stem characteristic n has been preserved in the oblique cases, so that there is no difficulty in distinguishing n-stems from the preceding vowel stems.

The n-Declension includes (_a_) masculines, (_b_) feminines, and (_c_) neuters. The masculines far outnumber the feminines, and the neuters contain only #ēage#, _eye_ and #ēare#, _ear_. The masculines end in -a, the feminines and neuters in -e.

64. Paradigms of (_a_) #sē hunta#, _hunter_; (_b_) #sēo tunge#, _tongue_; (_c_) #ðæt ēage#, _eye_:

_Sing. N._ hunt-a tung-e ēag-e _G.D.I._ hunt-an tung-an ēag-an _A._ hunt-an tung-an ēag-e

_Plur. N.A._ hunt-an tung-an ēag-an _G._ hunt-ena tung-ena ēag-ena _D.I._ hunt-um tung-um ēag-um

65. VOCABULARY.

sē adesa, _hatchet, adze_. sē ǣmetta, _leisure_ [empt-iness]. sē bǫna (bana), _murderer_ [bane]. sēo cirice, _church_ [Scotch kirk]. sē cnapa (later, #cnafa#), _boy_ [knave]. sē cuma, _stranger_ [comer]. ðæt ēare, _ear_. sēo eorðe, _earth_. sē gefēra, _companion_ [co-farer]. sē guma, _man_ [bride-groom[1]]. sēo heorte, _heart_. sē mōna, _moon_. sēo nǣdre, _adder_ [a nadder > an adder[2]]. sē oxa, _ox_. sē scēowyrhta, _shoe-maker_ [shoe-wright]. sēo sunne, _sun_. sē tēona, _injury_ [teen]. biddan (with dat. of person and gen. of thing[3]), _to request, ask for_. cwelan, _to die_ [quail]. gescieppan, _to create_ [shape, land-scape, friend-ship]. giefan (with dat. of indirect object), _to give_. healdan, _to hold_. helpan (with dat.), _to help_. scęððan[4] (with dat.), _to injure_ [scathe]. wiðstǫndan (-standan) (with dat.), _to withstand_. wrītan, _to write_.

[Footnote 1: The _r_ is intrusive in _-groom_, as it is in _cart-r-idge_, _part-r-idge_, _vag-r-ant_, and _hoa-r-se_.]

[Footnote 2: The _n_ has been appropriated by the article. Cf. _an apron_ (< _a napron_), _an auger_ (< _a nauger_), _an orange_ (< _a norange_), _an umpire_ (< _a numpire_).]

[Footnote 3: In Mn.E. we say “I request a favor of you”; but in O.E. it was “I request you (dative) of a favor” (genitive). Cf. _Cymbeline_, III, vi, 92: “We’ll mannerly demand thee of thy story.” See Franz’s _Shakespeare-Grammatik_, § 361 (1900).]

[Footnote 4: #Scęððan# is conjugated through the present indicative like #fręmman#. See § 129.]

66. EXERCISES.

I. 1. Sē scēowyrhta brȳcð his ǣmettan. 2. Ðā guman biddað ðǣm cnapan ðæs adesan. 3. Hwā is sē cuma? 4. Hielpst ðū ðǣm bǫnan? 5. Ic him ne helpe. 6. Ðā bearn scęððað ðæs bǫnan ēagum ǫnd ēarum. 7. Sē cuma cwielð on ðǣre cirican. 8. Sē hunta wiðstęnt ðǣm wulfum. 9. Ðā oxan berað ðæs cnapan gefēran. 10. Sē mōna ǫnd ðā tunglu sind on ðǣm heofonum. 11. Ðā huntan healdað ðǣre nǣdran tungan. 12. Hē hiere giefð ðā giefa. 13. Ðā werod scęððað ðæs cyninges feldum.

II. 1. Who will bind the mouths of the oxen? 2. Who gives him the gifts? 3. Thou art helping him, and I am injuring him. 4. The boy’s companion is dying. 5. His nephew does not enjoy his leisure. 6. The adder’s tongue injures the king’s companion. 7. The sun is the day’s eye. 8. She asks the strangers for the spears. 9. The men’s bodies are not here. 10. Is he not (#Nis hē#) the child’s murderer? 11. Who creates the bodies and the souls of men? 12. Thou withstandest her. 13. He is not writing.