noun to which the adjective belongs is not expressed, it is said to be understood.

Note 1. Adjectives are used in two ways: first, ATTRIBUTIVELY; as, "A good man died;" second, PREDICATIVELY; as, "He is good." In the first instance, the quality of goodness is Assumed as belonging to the subject of the verb: in the second place, it is Asserted. In the first instance, the adjective good qualifies the Grammatical Subject of the prop osition; in the second, it constitutes the Predicate of the proposition. In the proposition, a good man is a merciful man, the adjective good qualifies the Grammatical subject of the proposition, and the adjective merciful qualifies the Grammatical predicate of the proposition. The noun and adjective, good man, taken together, as expressing an idea, is the logical subject; and the noun and adjective, merciful man, taken together, is the logical predicate of the proposition.

Note 2. Adjectives belong to verbs in the Infinitive mode, which are equivalent to nouns; as, "To see is pleasant;" "To ride is more agreeable than to walk." In the sentences, "to be blind is unfortunate;" "to be wise is desirable," the adjectives blind and wise coalesce with the substantive verb to be, and thus become equivalent, the one to the Greek infin itive TupλúTTεv, and the other to the Latin infinitive sapere, either of which can supply the place of a noun. The com binations to be blind, to be wise, compared with a simple infinitive, resemble the combination was victorious, in which we have a substantive Verb and an adjective, a copula and a predicate, compared with the verb conquered, in which we have the copula and the predicate united in one word.

Note 3. Adjectives belong to Sentences, or whole Propositions: "Greece, which had submitted to the arms, in her turn subdued the understandings of the Romans, and, contrary to that which in these cases commonly happens, the conquerors adopted the opinions and manners of the conquered."—Enfield's Hist. Phil., b. iii., 1. "Writers and critics, misappre hending the true construction of these and similar sentences, have supposed the attributive to belong to the verb, denoting the manner of action. But a little attention to the sense of such passages will be sufficient to detect the mistake.

For

instance, in the example from Enfield, the attributive contrary can not qualify the verb adopted; for the conquerors did not adopt the opinions of the conquered in a manner contrary to what usually happens; the manner of the act is not the thing affirmed, nor does it come into consideration. The sense is this, the fact that the conquerors adopted the opinions and manners of the conquered was contrary to what commonly happens in like cases. The attributive belongs to the whole sentence or proposition. The same explanation is applicable to every simple sentence. It is not necessary to regard adjectives in such sentences as adverbs, or to change them to adverbs."-Webster, p. 108. If a sentence or part of a sentence can so far supply the place of a noun as to be the subject of a verb and the antecedent of a pronoun, why may it not have an adjective belonging to it?

Note 4. Adjectives are sometimes used to modify the meaning of other adjectives; as, "The iron was red hot," "the ship was quick sailing." These may be regarded as virtually compound Adjectives, whether joined by a hyphen or not. Participles are used in the same way; as, "In came Squire South, stark, staring mad."—Arbuthnot, So we meet with "roaring drunk ;" "loving jealous."

Note 5. An Adjective and a Noun may be taken as a Compound word, which, as such, may admit of an additional adjective; as, "An elegant young man." The relation in this case is Subordinate; for the adjective young and the noun man form but one idea, which is more definitely defined by the adjective elegant. In the expression, "He is an elegant and a young man," the relation is co-ordinate.

Note 6. "Many English verbs take an Adjective with them to form the predicate, where an adverb would be used in other languages;" as, "He fell ill," "He looks pale ;" "He feels cold;""He grew warm," "Her smiles amid the blushes lovelier show;" "Glows not her blush the fairer?"

In proof of this doctrine, which is advocated by Arnold, Dr. Webster had furnished a long list of examples, with comments. In order to understand how the doctrine can be true, it should be borne in mind that a Common verb contains in itself an attributive element or an adjective; and, as one adjective can

combine with another when separate from the verb, so it may when it is an element in the Verb. If this explanation is not satisfactory, see § 516. A different view, supported by strong historical reasons, as well as by its greater simplicity, is presented in § 225.

Note 7. The adjective Like is followed by the objective case. In the expression, this is like him, the original power of the Dative remains, though in current language him is in the accusative case. This is inferred, 1. From the fact that, in most languages that have inflections to a sufficient extent, the word meaning like governs a dative case. 2. That if we ever use any preposition at all to express similitude, it is the Preposition to; like to me. Some Grammarians prefer considering the Preposition to understood as the governing word. Nigh, near, next, like, when followed by the objective case, may be regarded either as Prepositions or as Adjectives, to being understood. See § 552, 10.

Note 8. Adjectives are often used as Substantives, and sometimes take the sign of the plural; as, "The wise;" "the deep," "the evils of war ;". "the sweets of life."

Note 9. A Substantive, or a phrase standing immediately before a substantive, is often equivalent to an Adjective; as, "A barn door;" "the marriage act;""an off-hand manner." See § 452.

Note 10. When an Adjective is used to express Comparison between two objects, it is put in the comparative degree; as, "He is the taller of the two;" "She is more discreet than her sister." Even good writers, however, sometimes depart from this usage, and employ the Superlative in the comparison between two objects.

Note 11. When an Adjective is used to express Comparison between more than two objects of the same class, it is put in the superlative; as, "He was the bravest of the brave;""She was the loveliest of women."

In the use of the Comparative degree, if the terms of comparison belong to one and the same class, other is prefixed to the second term; as, "Socrates was wiser than the other Athenians." In the use of the Superlative degree, as the object expressed by the first term of the comparison is contained in

the class expressed by the second term, the word other can not be admitted; as, "Socrates was the wisest of the Athenians," not the wisest of the other Athenians. "The loveliest of her daughters, Eve," is phraseology condemned, on the ground that it implies that the first term, Eve, is contained in the second term of the comparison, daughters; whereas, from the nature of the case, it can not be.

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Note 12. Double Comparatives and Superlatives should be avoided; as, "More wiser," "more braver," "most strongest." Worser is obsolete, but lesser is still in use, as well as its abbreviation less. The superlative form of certain adjectives, which in the positive contain the utmost degree of the quality, is not in correct use; as, Extremest, chiefest; truest, rightest. Certain other pleonastic expressions of this kind are in current use among respectable authors; as, More perfect, most perfect; less universal, so universal. This phraseology is not to be encouraged, though we may have to submit to it. Thus the word lesser is used for less by good authors.

Note 13. Adjectives and Adverbs are sometimes improperly used for each other; as, "Extreme bad weather," for extremely; "the then ministry," for the then existing ministry; "weeds and flowers promiscuous shoot," for promiscuously; "indifferent honest," for indifferently honest.

Note 14. An adjective is sometimes used Infinitively, or Independently of a noun, when joined to a verb infinitive or to a participle; as, "To be cheerful is the habit of a truly pious mind;" "The desire of being happy reigns in all hearts."

THE

COLLOCATION OF ADJECTIVES.

§ 459. The adjective is generally placed immediately before the substantive; as, A learned man; a virtuous woman Exception 1. When the adjective is closely connected with some other word, by which its meaning is modified or explained; as, "A man loyal to his prince."

Exc. 2. When the verb serves merely the purpose of a copula, to unite the predicate with its subject; as, "Thou art good."

Exc. 3. When there are more adjectives than one con nected with the substantives; as, "A man wise, learned, valiant, and good."

Exc. 4. When metrical harmony will be obtained; as, "Hail! bard divine."

Exc. 5. When the adjective is preceded by an adverb, the noun is often placed first; as, "A man conscientiously exact." Exc. 6. When an adjective becomes a title; as, "Alexan der the Great;" "Henry the First.”

Exc. 7. When time, number, or dimension are specified, the adjective follows the substantive; as, "He is four years old," "An army twenty thousand strong," "A wall three feet thick."

Exc. 8. When an emphatical adjective is used to introduce a sentiment, it precedes, at some distance, the substantive which it qualifies; as, "Auspicious will be that event."

Exc. 9. The adjective all may be separated from its substantive by the; as, "All the nations of Europe." Such and many, when they modify nouns in the singular number, are separated from them by a; as, "Such a character is rare;" "Many a time."

All adjectives are separated from nouns by a when preceded by so or as-" so rich a dress;" "as splendid a retinue." They are also separated by a and the when preceded by how or however; as, "How distinguished an act of bravery;" "How brilliant the prize;" "However just the complaint;" and by too; as, "Too costly a sacrifice." The word soever may be interposed between the attribute and the noun; as, "How clear soever this idea of infinity; how remote soever it may seem."—Locke. Double, in the sense of twice, is separated from its noun by the or a; as, "Double the or a distance." In the sense of two-fold it is preceded by the or a; as, "The or a double wrapper." Both is sepa rated from its noun by the; as, "Both the men." All and singular, or every, precede the before the noun in these phrases: "All and singular the articles, clauses, and conditions;" «All and every of the articles"-phrases of the law style.

Worth not only follows the noun which it qualifies, but is followed by a noun denoting price or value; as, "A book