In the preceding lift, fome of the verbs will be found to be conjugated regularly, as well as irregularly; and those which admit of the regular form are marked with an R. There is a preference to be given to fome of these, which cuftom and judgment muft determine. The Compiler has not inferted fuch as are irregular only in familiar writing or difcourfe, and which are improperly terminated by t, instead of ed: as, learnt, fpelt, spilt, &c. These should be avoided in every fort of compofition. It is, however, proper to obferve, that fome contractions of ed into t, are unexceptionable and others, the only established forms of expreffion: as, crept, dwelt, gilt, &c. : and loft, felt, flept, &c. These allowable and neceffary contractions must therefore be carefully diftinguished by the learner, from those that are exceptionable. The words which are obsolete have also been omitted, that the learner might not be induced to mistake them for words in prefent use. Such are, wreathen, drunken, holpen, molten, gotten, holden, bounden, &c. and fwang, wrang, flank, ftrawed, gat, brake, tare, ware, &c.

SECT. 11. Of Defective Verbs; and of the different ways in which verbs areconjugated.

DEFECTIVE VERBS are thofe which are used only in fome of their moods and tenses.

That the verbs muft and ought have both a prefent and past fignification, appears from the following fentences:

"I must own that I am to blame ;"" He must have been miftaken;""Speaking things which they ought not ;” "These ought ye to have done."

In most languages there are fome verbs which are defective with refpect to perfons. These are denominated inperfonal verbs. They are ufed only in the third perfon, because they refer to a fubject peculiarly appropriated to that perfon; as, "It rains, it fnows, it hails, it lightens, it thunders." But as the word imperfonal implies a total abfence of perfons, it is improperly applied to thofe verbs which have a perfon : and hence it is manifeft, that there is no fuch thing in English, nor indeed, in any language, as a fort of verbs really imperfonal.

The whole number of verbs in the English language, regular and irregular, fimple and compounded, taken together, is about 4300. The number of irregular verbs, the defective included, is about 177.*

Some Grammarians have thought that the English verbs, as well as thofe of the Greek, Latin, French, and other languages, might be claffed into several conjugations; and that the three different terminations of the participle might be the distinguishing characteristics. They have accordingly propofed three conjugations; namely, the first to confist of verbs, the participles of which end in ed, or its contraction; the second, of those ending in ght; and the third of thofe in en. But as the verbs of the first conjugation, would fo greatly exceed in number those of both the others, as may be seen by the preceding account of them; and as thofe of the third conjugation are fo various in their form, and incapable of being reduced to one plain rule; it feems better in practice, as Dr. Lowth justly observes, to confider the first in ed as the only regular form, and the other as deviations from it; after the example of the Saxon and German Grammarians.

* The whole number of words, in the English language, is about thirty-five thoufand.