Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 2: Notes
General
Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 2: Notes
English literature -- Middle English, 1100-1500
The weak declension of adjectives has -e throughout the singular,
_n. m._ alde 44, b 87, halie b 121, _f._ leofe b 88, foaȝe b 119, blake
b 120, _neut._ faȝe b 91; _d. m._ ȝunge b 87, halie 87, 100, ufele 42,
_f._ eche b 98, stronge b 106, _neut._ halie b 17; _a. f._ muchele b 36.
The only exception is heh _s. n. m._ 69. The strong forms are
flectionless in the singular, except _s. d. f._ halie b 7, b 27, b 75,
heuie b 66, mildere 70, seolcuðre 17 (with heowe _neut._), warde 41
(= wardre); _s. a. m._ sunfulle b 66, _s. a. f._ muchele b 15, b 49. The
termination of all cases of the plural, strong and weak, is e;
exceptions are blaca b 99, freo b 50, sari b 56. #āgen# is represented
by aȝene _s. a. f._ 34, _pl._ 23, 35, b 98: #ān#, #nān# appear as an
_n._ 45, 50, b 84, on 43, nan 42, b 69, naþing 79; ane _d. m._ b 8,
_a. m._ 40, ene b 45, an 16, ane _a. f._ 20, b 9, an _a. neut._ 49, nan
51, na b 101. Adjectives used as nouns are deade _s. d._ b 59, fulle
_s. a._ b 104, god 48, 52, b 101, sunfulle _pl. d._ b 76, _pl. a._ 11:
nouns as adjectives, erming 6, 22, 31, 96, liȝere 53, wrecche 7, 11, 13:
hindene b 116 has _pl._ adj. termination. Noteworthy among numerals are
þridde 25, 95, fifte 26, siste 26, seofeþe 26 (#seofoþa#).
The personal pronouns are ic, we, us, þu, ȝe, eow, heow b 21, how b 118.
The pronoun of the third person is _s. n._ he _m._ 13, heo _f._ 50, 86,
91 (dei like L. dies is _fm._), b 88, b 104, hit _neut._ 10, _d._ him
_m._ 12, 13, hire _f._ 91, _a._ hine _m._ b 10 (4), heo _f._ 50, hit
_neut._ 2, _pl. n._ hi b 93, heo 8 (10), ha 21, b 15, _d._ heom 9, 56, b
39, ham 70, b 117, _a._ heon b 98 (for heom), ham 36, 39. Reflexives are
ham 5, heom 94, heom seoluen b 117, b 118; definitive, seolf 76, 83;
possessives, mine _s. a. f._ 63, _pl. a._ 58, þin _s. n. m._ 60, 69,
þines _s. g. m._ b 62, þine _s. d. m._ 66, b 63, _s. d. f._ 67, _pl. d._
66, his 34, hire 20, ure 55, 83, heore 6 (5), hare 31. The definite
article is _s. n._ þe _m._ 4, _f._ 25, þet _neut._ 25 &c., þat 25, _g._
þes _m._ 4, _f._ b 100, _neut._ 68, _d._ þam _m._ 41, 87, þan 3 (6), þen
61, 69, þon 5, þe b 8 (4), þa 3, þare _f._ b 98, þere b 60, b 84, b 103,
þer 15, b 106, þe 15, þan _neut._ b 17, þon 23, þa b 111, þe 15, _a._
þenne _m._ 75, þene 90, 97, b 59, þon 88, þe b 24, þa _f._ 20, b 32, þe
24, þet _neut._ b 70 (with scrift _m._), _pl. n._ þa, 5, 6, b 79, _d._
þam 7 (4), þan 13, 32, þa 14 (4), þe 15, _a._ þa 11 &c.: þet 8, b 35, b
47, b 51, b 114, b 115, b 116, is demonstrative. The article is also
used as antecedent to relatives, þeo þe b 19, þa þe b 39, they who. The
compound demonstrative is _s. n._ þis _m._ b 84, þes b 31, þis _neut._ b
91, þas b 73 (comp. 13/43), _d._ þisse _m._ b 10 (3), þis b 77, þisse
_f._ 54, b 91, _neut._ 31, _a._ þeos _m._ b 81, þas _f._ b 36, þis
_neut._ b 39, _pl. n._ þas 30, b 90, þos b 95, b 99, þeos b 14, b 33, b
105, _d._ þas b 113, _a._ 57, 65, þes b 100. The relative is mostly þe,
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