§ =98.= The ending _-en_ (plur. nom. of nouns; prepositions; infinitive; strong past part.; plur. pres. and pret. of verbs) is in Middle English (a) commonly treated as a full syllable during the first period, and later on mostly, although not always, to avoid hiatus, before vowels and _h_, e.g. _His éyen stépe_ Chauc. Prol. 201; _Bifórenn Críst allmáhhtig Gódd_ Orm. 175; _Befóren ánd behýnde_ Alexius, ii. 393; _abóven álle nációuns_ Chauc. Prol. 53; _þú schalt béren hím þis ríng_ Floris and Blanch. 547; _Fór to délen with no swích poráille_ Chauc. Prol. 247; _bifrórenn_ Orm. 13856; _forlórenn_ ib. 1395; _Sche wás arísen ánd al rédy díght_ Chauc. Kn. T. 183; _Hir hósen wéren óf fyn scárlet reed_ id. Prol. 456; _For thís ye knówen álso wél as I_ ib. 730; _Swa þátt teȝȝ shúlenn wúrrþen þǽr_ Orm. 11867; _þatt háffdenn cwémmd himm í þiss líf_ ib. 210; _Ál þet wé misdíden hére_ Moral Ode, 99; (b) syncopated or slurred, especially in later times, after the _n_ has been dropped already in prepositions and verbal inflexions, e.g. _His póre féren he delde_ Alexius, ii. 210; _Hálles and bóures_, _óxen and plóugh_ ib. 12; _Bifórr þe Rómanísshe kíng_ (instead of _biforenn_) Orm. 6902; _Hastów had fléen al nýght_ Chauc. Manc. Prol. 17; _She bóthe hir yónge chíldren untó hir cálleþ_ id. Cl. T. 1081; _is bórn: þat wenten hím bifórn_ id. Man of Lawes T. 995-7; _withínne a lítel whýle_ id. Sq. T. 590; _And únderfóngen his kínedóm_ Flor. and Blanch. 1264; _þei máde sówen in þát cité_ Alexius, i. 577; _Bíddeþ his mén cómen him nére_ ib. 134; _Hórn_: _i-bórn_ King Horn, 137-8; _forlóren_: _Hórn_ ib. 479-80; _Was rísen and rómede_ Chauc. Kn. T. 207; _my líef is fáren on lónde_ id. N. Pr. T. 59; _And fórth we ríden a lítel móre than páas_ id. Prol. 825; _þei drýven him ófte tó skornínge_ Alexius, i. 308; _þei rísen alle úp with blíþe chére_ ib. 367; _þei cásten upón his cróun_ ib. 312; _And wíssheden þat hé were déd_ Alexius, ii. 335, &c. In Modern English this ending is much more rare, and is hardly ever used as a full syllable of the verse. The plural ending _-en_ of the substantive occurs now and then in Wyatt's and Surrey's verse, as e.g. in _éyen_ instead of _éyes_, both in rhyme, e.g. _éyen_: _míne_ Sur. 14, and in the interior of the line, ib. 126, 128; Wyatt 8, 17, &c. Prepositions ending in _-en_ are scarcely ever used now; sometimes the archaic _withóuten_ is to be met with in some Early Modern English poets, and then, of course, as a trisyllable: _withóuten dréad_ Sur. 95; _withóuten énd_ Spenser, F. Q. II. ix. 58. The obsolete infinitives in _-en_ may also be found sometimes in the writings of the same and other early Modern English poets: _in váyn_: _sáyen_ Sur. 31; _his flócke to víewën wíde_ Spenser, F. Q. I. i. 23; _to kíllën bád_ Shak. Pericles, II. Prol. 20. Likewise certain antiquated plural forms of the verb in _-en_: _dischárgën cléan_ Sur. 30; _fen_: _lífedën_ Spenser, F. Q. II. x. 7; _and wáxën ín their mírth_ Shak. M. N. Dr. II. i. 56.