THE ACTIVE INFINITIVE. 
151 
and woruldlice (5eawas ealle forlcetan (sic!). — lb. II. 130* 2 : gearowe waeron 
ehtnysse to boligenne, and deatSe sweltan. 
wierSe, worthy: 
Mlf. L. S. 138.353 b : biddende mid wope baet hi wurSe waeron for criste to 
browiganne and becuman (sic!) to his halgum. 
II. THE INFINITIVE INFLECTED. 
The inflected infinitive occurs with numerous adjectives to specify the 
tendency, the purpose, or the activity appropriate to the quality denoted by 
the adjective, about as does the Latin phrase made up of ad -f a gerund (or 
ad-\- a gerundive), or the Latin gerund in the genitive or the dative or the 
ablative, or the supine in -w-, — idioms to which the Anglo-Saxon inflected 
infinitive often corresponds in the translations. The Infinitive of Specifica¬ 
tion occurs with the following groups 1 of adjectives (and adverbs): — 
1. Adjectives Denoting Readiness, Capacity, Inclination, and the like, 
with their opposites, the chief representatives of which are gearu, i ready,' and 
its negative, ungearu: — 
aemetig, at leisure, free . 
bealdra, bolder. 
behydigest, most solicitous. 
freora, freer. 
from, energetic. 
fus, ready. 
gearu, ready. 
gedyrstig, audacious. 
gemyndig, mindful. 
geornfull [giom-], eager, desirous. 
geomost, most eager. 
geris(e)ne, suitable, apt . 
geSancol, thoughtful. 
gifre, eager. 
hal, whole , able (?). 
hrsed, quick. 
hraetS: see hraed. 
laet, slow. 
latheort, slow of heart. 
listhendig, skillful. 
lustbaere, desirous. 
iustfull, desirous. 
lustlic, desirous. 
mi(e)htig, mighty, powerful. 
open, open. 
scearp, sharp, eager. 
strang [-o-], strong, powerful. 
strengra, stronger. 
swift, swift. 
trum, firm, strong. 
Surhwaeccendlic, very vigilant. 
ungearu[-o], unready. 
2. Adjectives Denoting Ease and Difficulty and the like, of which the chief 
representatives are ieSe, 1 easy/ its negative, unie&e, and earfo&(e), ‘ difficult: ’ — 
deop, deep, profound. 
earfoS(e), difficult. 
earfoSest, most difficult. 
earfoSIic, difficult. 
hefig, difficult. 
ieSe [y-, e-, ea-], easy. 
ietSelic, easy. 
ieSre, easier. 
lang [-0-], long, tedious. 
langsum [- 0 -], long, tedious. 
leoht, light, easy. 
leohtest, lightest, easiest. 
lytel, little, insignificant. 
unietSe [-ea-, -e-j, not easy, difficuU. 
3. Adjectives Denoting Goodness, Usefulness, Necessity, and the like, of 
which the chief representatives are god, 1 good;' sel, ‘ excellent; ’ wier&e , 
* worthy/ and its compounds; nyt, 1 useful/ with its compounds; and nieddearf, 
‘ necessary/ with its compounds: — 
aetSele, excellent, valuable. 
betere, better. 
betst, best. 
frymful, beneficial. 
god, good. 
maere, glorious, famous. 
1 The groups are substantially those given by Dr. Wiilfing, 2 3 1. c., II, pp. 197-206. A fevr adjectives appear 
in more than one group. 
