INTRODUCTION TO ETYMOLOGY. Sometimes when you are idle, dear, The silk upon these bobbins wind; Put all the bits of work below, And crochet-needle, too, you know, ETYMOLOGY. Now Etymology, I see, Means, place these words where they should be, Or classify them right. The names of all you'll learn at first, Then place in sentences, I trust, When you have learned to write. PARTS OF SPEECH. How many sorts of words are there in the English language? There are nine different sorts of words in English-1st, The Article; 2d, the Noun; 3d, the Adjective; 4th, the Pronoun; 5th, the Verb; 6th, the Adverb; 7th, the Preposition; 8th, the Conjunction; 9th, the Interjection. THE ARTICLES (Mean Little Joints.) The articles are a or an, And the, a still more definite one; The man is still a man Then the and a are articles, What easy little particles; The pen, an egg, a fan. THE NOUN. A noun's the name of any thing- And names of beings too; Thus strawberries, with plums and pies, And Jessie, James, and Hugh. THE ADJECTIVE. Now when we show the kind of thing, We use an adjective. Thus blue-eyed, curly-headed doll, Or good, bad, sensitive. THE PRONOUN. Α pronoun stands in the noun's stead, She looked at you, and then at us. THE VERB. Now words which show what beings do, Then what can things do? Candles burn, The ships explode, the tables turn, The river overflows. THE ADVERB, When added to a verb-look now, It shows when, where, 'twas done, and how. John wrote that letter well. How did he write it? Well! And when? Last night. And where? Just here-but then He asked me not to tell. THE PREPOSITION. The preposition's easy rather, It shows how nouns stand to each other: Up, down, and over, in, between, THE CONJUNCTION. Now what is a conjunction, dear? Thus Fanny has a cloak or shawl, ་ ་ But Jane and Ann have none at all; THE INTERJECTION. 7 When utt'ring some strong exclamation, Perhaps a word of admiration, We interjections use: Most charming! O! how nice! Well done! How beautiful! Beloved one! Sorrow! How it subdues ! These definitions are so short. Perhaps you'll understand them not, But we must try again. We'll take the greatest in renown- THE NOUN. Papa, Mamma, Dick, Tom, and Jane, And London Bridge or Glasgow Green, Then all the flowers and birds you see, And all the fishes in the sea, Or insects in the sky, And heaven, or earth, with sun or moon The name of each is called a noun Of some variety. Then height, breadth, depth, and thickness through, And virtue, vice, and goodness too, With loveliness and beauty, Next Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday; then Our letters, papers, wax, and pen, With compliments and duty. I'm very sure you know the nouns : Queens, lords and ladies, kings and clowns, And darkness too and light; Our flesh and blood, with heat and cold, And many names we have not told, How many different kinds of nouns have we in our language? Six. Proper and common, compound and collective, verbal and abstract. |