404 
Univeral A « debt” is aliquid debil-uims 
were} « Rent” aliquid rendit-um. 
: “ Tribute” aliquid -¢ribut-um, 
An “act” aliquid act-um. 
si ce” aliquid expens-um, 
s¢ Merit” aliquid merit-um. 
« Accent” aliquid accent-um. 
* Fate” aliquid fat-um, 
Examples 
from the 
French, 
From Eng- 
lish and 
Saxon roots. 
Notns in 
ment and 
tion both 
concrete, 
and ab- 
stract. 
« Alley” is formed from the French ver» aller, to go, 
meaning a sort of passage. “ View” is from vil, the 
past participle of the verb voir, to see, and signifies 
something seen. ‘“ Destiny,” une chose destinée. The 
derivation of all these words is sufficiently obvious. — 
Mr Tooke has with great ability traced to a similar 
origin many English nouns in which it was not former- 
ly suspected. “Spot” he derives from the verb spit, 
of which he considers it as the past participle. The 
noun “ gate,” from the verb go, or gae; ‘“‘ road,” from 
the verb ride, signifying a place that has been rode upon: 
** Head,” according to him, is from heav.ed, and means 
a part elevated, ‘ Heaven’? is from the same verb, 
and similar in its original meaning, though different in 
its application. A “ flood” is something which has 
flowed. “ Bread’? is grain which, in one step of its 
preparation for food, has been brayed. ‘ Weft” is the 
past participle of the verb weave. The “ haft” of a tool 
is the part hav'd. -A “hilt” isa part held. ‘“ Brood, 
breed, and brat,” are from the Saxon verb bredan, to che- 
rish. ‘ Hand” from hentan, to lay hold of. “ Faug” 
and “ finger,” from jfingaz, to take. “ Truth’ comes 
from the verb to frue, and signifies that which a man 
tru-eth, or believeth. ‘‘ Birth” is that which bear-eth : 
** Growth” that which grow-eth : “ Wealth” that which 
weal-eth: ** Earth,” that which a man -ear-eth or 
plougheth. 
Some of Mr Tooke’s etymologies, tending to the il- 
lustration of the same general remark, have been dis- 
puted; but the etymologies substituted on these oc- 
casions generally turn out to be of a similar nature, de- 
riving the names of substances from verbs of motion. 
When a concrete noun is intended to convey the im- 
pression of a connection betwixt an object and any vo- 
luntary human act, the etymology is for the most part 
intentionally obvious. Thus from the verb command 
we have the noun “ commandment,” for a sentence 
employed in commanding. From accompany we have 
«accompaniment ;” from judge “ judgment,” or opi- 
nion ; from invest “ investment.” A great number of 
nouns of this description derived from Latin verbs, ter- 
minate in tion ; as “fraction, sanction, conflagration, 
collision.” Some terminate in ance or ence ; as “resist- 
ance, inheritance, science, prudence.” We have others 
from the same language with different terminations; as 
* lecture,” from legere toread. From the English verb 
know, we have the noun ‘‘ knowledge.”” Sometimes 
nouns are formed, by adding to a verb the termination 
ing, as. landing’’ from land, and “ fighting” from fight. 
Sometimes the use of the word as a noun is not indica- 
ted by any particular sign, but merely by the scope of 
the sentence. The words “ love,” “ fight,” “ stand,” 
** fold,” <« tie,’? * fly,”? “ escape,” are used both as 
nouns and as verbs. 
Nouns of a similar structure, and sometimes the 
very same nouns, are used to express the abstract ideas 
comprehended in verbs. ‘ Government” expresses ei- 
ther the abstract idea of the act of governing, or the 
concrete ideas of a particular instance in which this act 
is ‘exercised, as “ the British, the American, and the 
Turkish governments.”. Even the more general express 
GRAMMAR: 
sion “‘a go 
ernment,” is concrete, while “ government” Unie 
is abstract. A similar two-fold application may be made Grar 
of the nouns “ reflection,” * melee ann tictieaae: - 
m oP se pleasure,” “ love,” “ decision,” se repetition 29 n s 
We may speak of “ love” in general as an affection of the 
mind ; or, a swain, in speaking of his mistress, may call 
her “ his love.” We may speak of “judgment” and 
** reflection” as faculties of mind, or we may call the 
sentiments resulting from their employment, .* judgs 
ments’’ and “reflections.” — It was, at one time, com- 
mon in our language to. employ different forms of the 
word on these two oecasions.. We had, for example 
« excellence” and “ dependence” in) the abstract ; 
“ excellency” and “ dependency” in the concrete.’ - 
Many nouns, beth concrete and abstract, are derived Deriv 
from adjectives. Instances of concrete nouns of this from 
origin, we have in the word “ white,” for the white of "Y* 
an egg, and.in the appellation “ black, or negro,” for a 
man of a black complexion. On the same. principle, 
articles of merchandise are called “ goods.”. Regiments 
are distinguished by, the designations of ‘* the blues,” 
“the buffs,” or “ the greys ;” and showy iS are 
denominated ‘beaux and belles.” These words denote 
collections of ideas, or qualities, each under a designa- 
tion borrowed irom one of the most conspicuous. Hence 
they are described by Mr Tooke as specimens of sub- 
audition, one quality beiag mentioned, and the rest 
which form the individual undertinal dorm ot 
Many of them approach in their nature mo-= 
logy eet eb are derived from verbs by vi em 
through the medium of the participle, a part of 
resembling in some respects. the adjective, and often 
considered by grammarians as in no respect different 
from it, ; L cnn 
Abstract nouns also, or the names of single qualities, 
are derived from adjectives. This is done in our lan- 
guage by the addition of the termination ness as in 
« goodness,’’ ‘ whiteness,” ‘ brightness,” ‘* redness.” 
Whether or not this termination is originally the same 
with the French word ez, signifying nose, and with the 
termination “ ness,” as applied to projecting points of 
land in such proper names as ‘‘ Inverness” and “ Sheer= _ 
ness,” we. shall not stop to inquire. Whatever is its 
derivation, it has the same meaning with the word 
“ quality.” . Whether it was, at any former period, a 
separate word under a different extent of application, 
is a question of inferior importance. A termination 
regularly used as a sign has all the distinctness of a se- 
parate word, though written more close to another con- 
nected sign, and sometimes involving a greater rapi- 
dity of pronunciation. + ‘ 
Abstract nouns derived from adjectives belonging to 
other languages are various ; some terminating in (ude, 
as “ gratitude,” “ magnitude ;” others in ¢y, as “purity,” © 
« propriety ;” or in ence, as “prudence,” “ science,” and 
“ patience.” ‘ 
Some abstract nouns are derived from compound ad- 
jectives owing their origin to previously existing nouns, 
“« Loveliness” is ‘derived from the adjective “ lovely,” 
which comes from the noun * love.” | We have, in. like 
manner, “ faith, faithful, faithfulness ;” “ boy, boyish, 
boyishness,” and many other exemplifications. Ms ; 
Sometimes an abstract is derived from a concrete Abstr 
noun, by means of a termination, as “ boyhood” from baa: ; 
« boy,” and “ neighbourhood” from * neighbour.” ceil 
Nouns originally abstract are often applied as con- . 
cretes. A female possessed of the qualification of beau~ Abstra 
ty, is called “a beauty ;” a person of a strange charac- lr: 
ter, “an oddity ;” and a curious object, “ a.curiosity.” + cretes, 
