Chapter 21

COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS.

#Adjectives#.

96. (1) Adjectives are regularly compared by adding -ra for the comparative, and -ost (rarely -est) for the superlative:

_Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ earm, _poor_ earmra earmost rīce, _rich_ rīcra rīcost smæl, _narrow_ smælra smalost brād, _broad_ brādra (brǣdra) brādost swift, _swift_ swiftra swiftost

(2) Forms with i-umlaut usually have superlative in -est:

_Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ eald, _old_ ieldra ieldest lǫng, _long_ lęngra lęngest strǫng, _strong_ stręngra stręngest geong, _young_ giengra giengest hēah, _high_ hīerra hīehst

(3) The following adjectives are compared irregularly:

_Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ gōd, _good_ bętra bętst lȳtel, _little, small_ lǣssa lǣst micel, _great, much_ māra mǣst yfel, _bad_ wiersa wierst

(4) The positive is sometimes supplied by an adverb:

_Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ feor, _far_ fierra fierrest nēah, _near_ nēarra nīehst ǣr, _before_ ǣrra, _former_ ǣrest, _first_

(5) The comparatives all follow the Weak Declension. The superlatives, when preceded by the definite article, are weak; but when used predicatively they are frequently strong: #sē lǣsta dǣl#, _the least part_; #Ðonne cymeð sē man sē ðæt swiftoste hors hafað tō ðǣm ǣrestan dǣle and tō ðǣm mǣstan#, _Then comes the man that has the swiftest horse to the first part and to the largest_. But, #ðæt bȳne land is ēasteweard brādost# (not #brādoste#), _the cultivated land is broadest eastward_; #and# (#hit#) #bið ealra wyrta mǣst#, _and it is largest of all herbs_; #Ac hyra# (= #hiera#) #ār is mǣst on ðǣm gafole ðe ðā Finnas him gyldað#, _But their income is greatest in the tribute that the Fins pay them_.

(6) The comparative is usually followed by #ðonne# and the nominative case: #Sē hwæl bið micle lǣssa ðonne ōðre hwalas#, _That whale is much smaller than other whales_; #Ðā wunda ðæs mōdes bēoð dīgelran ðonne ðā wunda ðæs līchaman#. _The wounds of the mind are more secret than the wounds of the body_.

But when #ðonne# is omitted, the comparative is followed by the dative: #Ūre Ālīesend, ðe māra is ǫnd mǣrra eallum gesceaftum#, _Our Redeemer, who is greater and more glorious than all created things_; #nē ongeat hē nō hiene selfne bętran ōðrum gōdum mǫnnum#, _nor did he consider himself better than other good men_.

#Adverbs.#

97. (1) Adverbs are regularly compared by adding -or for the comparative and -ost (rarely -est) for the superlative:

_Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ georne, _willingly_ geornor geornost swīðe, _very, swīðor, _more_ swīðost, _most, chiefly_ severely_ ǣr, _before_ ǣror, _formerly_ ǣrest, _first_ norð, _northwards_ norðor norðmest[1]

(2) The comparatives of a few adverbs may be found by dropping -ra of the corresponding adjective form:

_Positive._ _Comparative._ _Superlative._ lǫnge, _long_ lęng lęngest micle, _much_ mā mǣst wel, _well_ bęt bętst

[Footnote 1: This is really a double superlative, m being itself an old superlative suffix. _Cf._ Latin _opti-m-us_. In Mn.E. _northmost_ and _hindmost_, _-m-est_ has been confused with _-most_, with which etymologically it has nothing to do.]

#Expressions of Time.#

98. (1) Duration of time and extent of space are usually expressed by the accusative case: #Ealle ðā hwīle ðe ðæt līc bið inne#, _All the time that the body is within_; #twēgen dagas#, _for two days_; #ealne weg#, _all the way, always_.

(2) Time when is more often expressed by the instrumental case when no preposition is used: #ðȳ ilcan dæge#, _the same day_; #ǣlce gēare#, _each year_; #ðȳ gēare#, _that year_; #ǣlce dæge#, _each day_.

(3) Time or space within which is expressed by #on# and the dative: #on sumera#, _in summer_; #on wintra#, _in winter_; #on fīf dagum#, _in five days_; #on fīf mīlum#, _in five miles_; #on ðissum gēare#, _in this year_; #on ðǣm tīman#, _in those times_. Sometimes by the genitive without a preceding preposition: #ðǣs gēares#, _in that year_.

99. VOCABULARY.

ðæt gefylce [folc], _troop, division_. ðæt lǫnd (land), _land_. sēo mīl, _mile_. ōðer ... ōðer, _the one ... the other_; _the former ... the latter_. sē sige, _victory_. sige[2] habban, _to win (the) victory_. sprecan, _to speak_. ðæt swīn (swȳn), _swine, hog_. wēste, _waste_.

[Footnote 2: #Sige# usually, but not invariably, precedes #habban#.]

100. EXERCISES.

I. 1. Hē hæfð ðrēo swīðe swift hors. 2. Ic hæbbe nigontīene scēap ǫnd mā ðonne twēntig swīna. 3. Sēo gōde cwēn cīest twā hund mǫnna. 4. Uton feohtan wið ðā Dęne mid ðrīm hunde scipa. 5. Ǫnd hīe wǣron on twǣm gefylcum: on ōðrum wæs[3] Bāchsęcg ǫnd Halfdęne ðā hǣðnan cyningas, ǫnd on ōðrum wǣron ðā eorlas. 6. Ðū spricst sōðlīce. 7. Ðonne rīt ǣlc mǫn his weges. 8. Æfter mǫnigum dagum, hæfde Ælfred cyning[4] sige. 9. Ðis lǫnd is wēste styccemǣlum. 10. Ðēs feld is fīftiges mīla brād. 11. Ælfred cyning hæfde mǫnige frīend, for ðǣm ðe hē wæs ǣgðer ge wīs ge gōd. 12. Ðā hwalas, ðe ðū ymbe spricst, sind micle lǣssan ōðrum hwalum. 13. Hēo is ieldre ðonne hiere swuster, ac mīn brōðor is ieldra ðonne hēo. 14. Wē cumað tō ðǣm tūne ǣlce gēare. 15. Ðā męn ðe ðā swiftostan hors hǣfdon wǣron mid ðǣm Dęnum fēower dagas.

II. 1. Our army (#werod#) was in two divisions: one was large, the other was small. 2. The richest men in the kingdom have more (#mā#) than thirty ships. 3. He was much wiser than his brother. 4. He fights against the Northumbrians with two ships. 5. After three years King Alfred gained the victory. 6. Whosoever chooses these gifts, chooses well. 7. This man’s son is both wiser and better than his father. 8. When the king rides, then ride his thanes also. 9. The richest men are not always (ā) the wisest men.

[Footnote 3: See p. 100, note on #gefeaht#.] [[Linenote 100.8]]

[Footnote 4: The proper noun comes first in appositive expressions: #Ælfred cyning#, #Sidroc eorl#, #Hēahmund bisceop#.]