Page images
PDF
EPUB

C

ETYMOLOGY OF GRAMMATICAL TERMS

[L. = Latin; Gr. = Greek; Fr. = French.]

Abridged, Fr. abréger, to shorten, from

L. abbreviare, from ab, from, and breviare, to shorten, from brevis, short. Active, L. activus, from agere, to put

in motion.

Adjective, L. adjectivum, from ad, to,

and jacere, to throw.

Adjunct, L. adjunctus, from ad and

jungere, to join.

Adverb, L. adverbium, from ad and

verbum, word, verb.

Analysis, Gr. analusis, from ana, again,

and luein, to loose. Antecedent, L. antecedens, from ante, before, and cedere, to go. Apposition, L. appositio, from ad and ponere, to place.

Auxiliary, L. auxiliaris, from auxili

um, help, aid.

Case, L. casus, from cadere, to fall, happen.

Clause, L. clausa, from claudere, to shut.

Comparison, L. comparatio, from con,

together or with, and par, equal. Complement, L. complementum, from con and plere, to fill. Complete, L. con and plere. Complex, L. complexus, from con and plectere, to twist.

Compound, L. componere, from con and ponere, to put.

Conjugation, L. conjugatio, from con

and jugare, to join. Conjunction, L. conjunctio, from con and jungere, to join. Conjunctive, L. conjunctivus, from con and jungere.

Coördinate, L. con and ordinatus, from ordinare, to regulate.

Declension, L. declinatio, from de, down,

and clinare, to lean.

Ellipsis, Gr. elleipsis, from en, in, and leipein, to leave.

Etymology, Gr. etumon, the true sense of a word, and logos, discourse. Feminine, L. femininus, from femina,

woman.

Finite, L. finitus, p. p. of finire, to limit.

Gender, L. genus, generis, race, kind. Grammar, Gr. gramma, letter. Imperative, L. imperativus, from imperare, to command.

Indicative, L. indicativus, from indicare, to proclaim.

Infinitive, L. infinitivus, from in, not,

and finire.

Inflection, L. inflexio, from in and flectere, to bend.

Interjection, L. interjectio, from inter, between, and jacere.

Intransitive, L. intransitivus, from in and transitivus.

Language, L. lingua, the tongue. Masculine, L. masculinus, from masculus, male.

Mood, Fr. mode, from L. modus, manner.
Neuter, L. neuter, neither.
Nominative, L. nominativus, from no-
men, name.

Noun, L. nomen, name.

Number, Fr. nombre, from L. numerus, number.

Object, L. objectus, from ob, against, and jacere.

Objective, L. objectivus. See Object.
Parse, L. pars, a part.

Participle, L. participium, from pars and capere, to take.

[blocks in formation]

Responsive, L. responsivus, from re and spondere, to promise.

Sentence, L. sententia, from sentire, to think.

Simple, L. simplex, from semel, once,

and plicare, to fold.

Subject, L. subjectus, from sub, under, and jacere.

Subjective, L. subjectivus. See Subject. Subjunctive, L. subjunctivus, from sub and jungere.

Subordinate, L. sub and ordinatus. Syntax, Gr. suntaxis, from sun, with, and tassein, to put in order. Synthesis, Gr. sunthesis, from sun, and tithenai, to place.

Tense, Fr. temps, from L. tempus, time.

Transitive, L. transitivus, from trans,

across, over, and ire, itum, to go. Verb, L. verbum, a word.

Verbal, L. verbalis, from verbum.

Voice, Fr. voix, from L. vox, vocis, voice.

D

SUGGESTIONS FOR COMPOSITION CLASSES

1. COPYING COMPOSITIONS

The composition should first be written on slate or paper, and all the errors the writer can find in it should be corrected.

be copied according to the following directions:

It may then

I. Paper. ·Use letter paper (size, about 8 by 10 inches), if convenient.

[ocr errors]

2. Subject. Write the subject in the middle of the first line. Every important word in the subject should begin with a capital letter.

Leave a blank line below the subject.

3. Margin. - Leave a margin of an inch on the left-hand side of each page if letter paper be used, or three quarters of an inch, if note paper be used.

In writing letters, leave only a very narrow margin.

4. Paragraphing. — Begin each paragraph an inch, or three quarters of an inch, to the right of the marginal line.

5. Signature. Write the signature on the next line below the end of the composition, near the right-hand edge of the paper.

6. Place and Date. - Write the name of the place and the date on the next line below the signature, near the left-hand edge.

7. Folding. -Fold the paper so that the width when folded will be equal to one third of the length of the sheet.

8. Indorsement. Write the name across the upper end, on the upper fold, an inch from the top. Write the subject about half an inch below the name, and the date about half an inch below the subject. The indorsement will be on the back of the upper left-hand corner of the composition when it is opened.

General Direction.

Use ink, if possible. Prepare your compositions with neatness and accuracy. If the composition is more than three pages long, take a new sheet, or half sheet.

2. CORRECTING COMPOSITIONS

The teacher should examine every composition carefully, and indicate in the margin the position and nature of the mistakes made. The pupil should then correct the errors with lead pencil, and return the composition to the teacher for a second examination. Any mark not understood by the pupil should be explained to him. If too many mistakes are made, the composition should be rewritten. Occasionally, pupils may be allowed to correct one another's compositions.

Care should be taken by the teacher

1. Not to criticise compositions too severely. He should remember that the great object to be attained by the pupil is the free written expression of thought.

2. To see that the pupils understand the meaning of the criticisms made by him.

SYSTEM OF MARKING

The following abbreviations will be found of service in correcting compositions. They should be written in the margin opposite the

error.

A line may be drawn under the word that is wrong, though it is frequently best simply to indicate the error in the margin, and allow the pupil to find it for himself. General corrections or comments may be made below the composition.

O, error in Orthography.
G, error in Grammar.

C, error in Capital Letter.
P, error in Punctuation.

W, error in use of Word; W w,

wrong word; W o,

word

omitted; Wr, word repeated,

etc.

S, error in Sentence; Sl, sentence

too long; Ss, sentence too short, etc.

F, error in Figure.

Par, error in Paragraphing.

E, error (nature of error not indicated).

?, to be inquired about.

Other abbreviations may be used, or part of the foregoing may be omitted, at the discretion of the teacher.

3. READING COMPOSITIONS

When compositions have been corrected, they may be read before the class or school. As a rule, each pupil should read his own composition. Criticisms from the other pupils as to the matter of the composition, manner of reading, etc., may be given.

The following devices may add interest to the composition exercises: 1. Intersperse the exercises with recitations, dialogues, readings carefully selected from standard authors, etc.

2. The school may be resolved into a literary society, with regular officers, and a programme of exercises, consisting of orations, essays, recitations, answering of referred questions, a debate, giving "sentiments," "2 critic's remarks, etc. Let the teacher take part in the exercises. The officers may be elected by ballot, if preferred. teacher should, however, assign the duties to be performed by the pupils.

The

1. Care must be taken to prevent the recitations given by pupils from being unrefined. The temptation to recite a "humorous" selection sometimes leads pupils to choose articles not entirely appropriate in language or thought.

2. A "sentiment" should be a selection of poetry or prose from a standard author. It should teach a moral lesson. Let the teacher frequently write upon the blackboard a choice selection to be copied and committed to memory by the pupils.

E

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

The different languages of the world have been arranged into groups, called families. Each family consists of a number of members that bear a resemblance to one another in many of their words. The English language belongs to the Teutonic group of the Indo-European or Aryan family, and many words and sounds in English greatly resemble those of other branches of this family.

The Aryans lived in Central Asia, and from that territory large bodies of them wandered into Persia, India, Greece, and Italy. Other bodies occupied nearly all the remaining countries of Europe. A band of this people, now called Kelts, settled in the British Isles, Gaul, and part of Spain. The Kelts were followed by the Teutons, the ancestors of the English and Germans, and they in turn were followed by the Slavs, from whom the Russians and other nations are descended.

In the fifth century the Saxons, Angles, and Jutes invaded Britain, and drove the British or Keltic inhabitants into Wales and other remote places. These Teutonic tribes settled in the lands they had won. The name Angle belonged at first to one tribe of the invaders, but it was gradually applied to all the invaders, so far at least as to name the island England (Angle-land), and the language English. They were called for a time Anglo-Saxons, and this name is now applied to the English language of that period. It should be borne in mind that Anglo-Saxon is simply the oldest form of our own language. Anglo-Saxon was a more highly inflected language than the English of to-day. For example, the noun day was declined as follows:

[blocks in formation]

Nouns had six cases and four declensions; adjectives were declined, and had three genders; pronouns had more forms, and some pronouns had three numbers, and so on. Many of these inflections were

LYTE'S ADV. GR. AND COMP.- - 23

« PreviousContinue »