Historical Analysis of English Words List of English Writers of the above Periods Appendix I., showing the Changes Letters undergo in French and English Words derived from the 179 180 A COMPENDIOUS GRAMMAR AND PHILOLOGICAL HAND-BOOK OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PART I. DEFINITIONS.-ORTHOEPY.-ORTHOGRAPHY. Language (French langue, Lat. lingua = Language. tongue) is the expression of our thoughts by words, both spoken and written. Language is made up of words; words, of syllables; and syllables, of letters. Letters are conventional symbols representing Letters. the different sounds of the voice. They were formerly pictures of different objects which they were intended to represent; that is, they formed a pictorial alphabet. A Syllable (sullabein = to take together, Greek) Syllable. is a single vowel sound, without or with one or more consonants, capable of being pronounced by a single effort of the voice. A Word consists of one or more syllables Word. having a distinct and independent meaning; as, one, orchard, glorious. Monosyllable. Dissyllable. A Monosyllable (monos = alone, Greek) is a word consisting of only one syllable; as, a, man, the. = A Dissyllable (dis two, Greek) is a word consisting of two syllables; as, garden, deist. Trisyllable. A Trisyllable (tri three, Greek) is a word consisting of three syllables; as, formerly. ble. = Polysylla- A Polysyllable (polus = many, Greek) is a word consisting of many syllables; as, luminary, tyrannically. Grammar. Orthoepy. Orthography. Etymology. Accidence. = Grammar (grapho to write, Greek) teaches the art of speaking and writing our thoughts correctly. Grammar is divided into four parts :-(1.) Orthoepy and Orthography; (2.) Etymology or Accidence; (3.) Syntax; (4.) Prosody. Orthoepy (orthos correct, and speak, Greek) means the correct pronunciation of words, and refers to spoken language. = epo = to = Orthography (orthos = correct, and grapho to write, Greek) means the correct spelling of words, and refers to written language. Etymology (etumos = true, and logos = word, Greek) is the true derivation of a word. It also has another and more general meaning, in which it corresponds with Accidence, when it teaches the inflections of words. In this sense, a rule of Etymology and a rule of Accidence mean the same thing. Accidence (accidentia-things happening, Lat.) treats of the inflections which words undergo. It teaches the rules for the formation of the cases and plurals of nouns, the tenses of verbs, etc. |