pronoun, however, has the nominative form when used as subject or as predicate term; as, "He is coming," "It is he." It takes the objective case as object of a verb or a preposition. In the absolute participial construction, the nominative case is used in modern English; as, “He being ill, we went to see him"; "It being he, we ran to meet him." This construction is similar to that found in the Latin where the ablative is the absolute case. Although logically correct in English, the nominative absolute is not used by the best writers, who prefer in ordinary cases a more direct form of sentence.

In general, an appositive takes the same case as the word which it explains, and the noun or pronoun that follows the verb be (or any copula) has the same case as the word that precedes the copula, the words standing in the relation of subject and predicate terms.

24. The possessive case. The possessive case is the form of a noun or pronoun which shows possession.

noun.

Ex. Man's, ladies'; my, your, his, their.

The possessive singular is formed by adding 's to the This possessive ending is a contraction of the old Anglo-Saxon termination es or is. In general, only the names of persons and animals have possessive cases, though in poetry, and rarely in prose, a possessive sign is added to other nouns as well. If the singular noun ends in s, usage varies in the form of the possessive. Some writers add the apostrophe only; others add 's, except in a few instances, such as "Moses' law" and "for Jesus' sake."

The possessive plural of nouns is formed by adding simply an apostrophe when the plural ends in s. When it ends in some other letter, 's is added; as, children's.

It will be observed that in the possessives of pronouns no apostrophe is used. The secondary forms, mine, theirs, etc., are generally used without the noun and may be used in either the nominatiye or the objective case.

Ex. This book is mine. (Predicate Nominative.)

They study from theirs. (Object of Preposition.)

If several nouns indicate joint possession, the possessive sign should be used with the last noun only.

Ex. They have a special sale of gloves at Jordan & Marsh's. If separate possession is implied, each noun should take the sign of the possessive.

Ex. Mr. Grant's and Mr. Allen's houses were both struck by lightning to-day.

She refused to listen to her parents' or to her teacher's advice.

EXERCISE
I

In each blank space, supply appropriately is or are:

1. Oats

2. "Horses"

than one.

3.

now being harvested.

of the plural number, because it means more

there any news in the city?

4. Great pains taken to preserve secrecy. 5. The whereabouts of his family

7. Physics interesting to study.

8.

not known.

my scissors in your workbasket?

9. Measles not commonly a dangerous disease.

10. The phenomena

most strange.

II

In each blank space, supply the possessive singular or plural of some appropriate noun:

Use the plurals of the following words in sentences of your own:

Cherub, spoonful, man-servant, parenthesis, sheep, fish, alumnus, Miss Clark, talisman, princess, zero, heathen.

IV

In each blank space, supply the correct case of some pronoun:

1. My brother did fully as well as

2. What were you and

3. My mother and

talking about?

have gone to the city.

5. The pupil's progress will depend largely upon diligent in practice.

6. That was the largest congregation

being

ever gathered in the

are not fit associates for you.

does she look like?

do you take me to be?

18. I do not know whether those strangers are the Grahams; but

I suppose it is

19. The Colonel's horse

has gone lame is his favorite.
shut the door?

20. Was it you or the wind 21. Who is there? It's only 22. The old man left his fortune to those his friends.

23. What do you think of 24. Has everybody solved 25. If any one is there, let

studying Latin? examples?

answer.

VERBS

he thought were

25. The verb is one of the most important parts of speech and undergoes many changes in form to express different meanings. Transitive verbs have voice, mood, tense, person, and number. Intransitive verbs have mood, tense, person, and number. Three forms of the verbthe present, the past, and the past participle are called principal parts, because from these all other forms are made regularly by the use of terminations and auxiliaries.

26. Voice is the form of a transitive verb which shows whether the actor or the one acted upon is the subject of the sentence. When a verb is changed from the active to the passive voice, the object of the active verb becomes the subject of

the passive verb, and the subject of the active verb usually becomes the object of the preposition by.

Ex. The teacher gave us a long lesson.

(Active.)

A long lesson was given us by the teacher. (Passive.)

The passive voice is always a verb phrase, made by the past participle with some form of the verb be.

Ex. It is finished.

He had been captured.

27. Mood is the form of a verb which represents the action as an actual fact, a possibility, a condition, or a command. There are three moods: indicative, subjunctive, and imperative.1

1. The indicative mood asserts or assumes something as a fact or is used to ask a question.

Ex. Goes, has sung, will ride.

2. In Old English, special verb forms called the subjunctive mood were common, and they are still found in poetry and solemn prose. In ordinary prose the forms are rare, and in conversation they are scarcely ever heard. The subjunctive is most commonly found in clauses beginning with if; the if is, however, no part of the subjunctive form. Although in many cases where the subjunctive was formerly used, the indicative is now employed, yet the subjunctive were is still the only correct verb in such purely hypothetical clauses as, "If I were in your place." The subjunctive be is also the proper form in the hypothesis of a scientific demonstration; as, "If the triangle A be placed on the triangle B."

1 Some grammarians still treat the potential form as a mood; but the general tendency is to give it separate treatment.