A Practical Grammar of the English Language in Which the Principles Established by Lindley Murray Are Inculcated and the Theory of the Modes Clearly (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1839 edition. Excerpt: ...What does the injimtive moat express 1--(10) What is the imperative mode used for t--" M What is tense J accurately, it is made to consist ' of six variations, viz. the present tense, the imperfect, the perfect, the pluperfect, the first future, and the second. The Present Tense 2 represents an action or event as passing at the time in which it is mentioned; as," I rule;" " I am ruled;" " I think;" " I fear." The present tense likewise expresses a character, quality, &c. at present existing; as, " He is an able man;" " She is an amiable woman." It is also used in speaking of actions continued, with occasional intermissions, to the present time; as, " He frequently rides;" " He walks out every morning;" "He goes into the country every summer." We sometimes apply this tense even to persons long since dead; as, " Seneca reasons and moralizes well;" " Job speaks feelingly of his afflictions." The present tense, preceded by the words when, before, after, as soon as, &c., is sometimes used to point out the relative time of a future action; as, " WTien he arrives, he will hear the news;" "He will hear the news before he arrives, or as soon as he arrives, or at farthest, soon after he arrives;" " The more she improves, the more amiable she will be." In animated historical narrations, this tense is sometimes substituted for the imperfect tense; as, " He enters the territory of the peaceable inhabitants; he fights and conquers, talccs an immense booty, which he divides among his soldiers, and returns home to enjoy an empty triumph." The Imperfect Tense 3 represents the action or event...