And now, having cut the regular verbs (as Alexander did the Gordian knot) instead of conjugating them, let us proceed to consider the
Irregular Verbs are those of which the imperfect tense and the perfect participle are _not_ formed by adding _d_ or _ed_ to the verb: as,
PRESENT. IMPERFECT. PERFECT PART. I blow. I blew. blown.
To say I am blown, is, under certain circumstances, such as windy and tempestuous weather, proper enough; but I am blowed, it will at once be perceived, is not only an ungrammatical, but also a vulgar expression.
Great liberties are taken with the Irregular Verbs, insomuch that in the mouths of some persons, divers of them become doubly irregular in the formation of their participles. Among such Irregular Verbs we may enumerate the following:--
PRESENT. IMPERFECT. PERF. OR PASS. PART. Am wur bin. Beat bet _or_ bate bate. Burst bust busted. Catch cotch cotched Come kim comed. Creep crup crup. Drive druv driv. Freeze friz froze. Give guv giv. Go goed went. Rise riz rose. See sid sin, &c.
Some verbs which in this country are held to be regular, are treated as irregular verbs in America: as,
PRESENT. IMPERFECT. PERF. OR PASS. PART. Row rew rown. Snow snew snown.
Most men have five senses, Most verbs have six tenses; But as there are some folks Who are blind, deaf, or dumb folks, Just so there are some verbs Defective, or _rum_ verbs,
which are used only in some of their moods and tenses.
IMPERF. PERF. OR PASS. PART. Can could nix. May might -- Shall should -- Will would -- Must must -- Ought ought -- -- quoth --
There is not, perhaps, anything in the defective verbs peculiarly valuable in a comic point of view. However, it should not be forgotten, that
_Can_ is one of the signs of the POT-ential Mood;
_Will_, _Would_ reminds us of the Drapier’s Letters.
“_Must_” is for the House of Commons (it used to be for the King).
Ought, ought, with 1 before it, stands, (in schoolboy phrase) for 100.
’Tis naught, so to speak, however, says Murray.
Having as great a dislike as the youngest of our readers can have to repetitions, we shall not say what an adverb is over again. It is, nevertheless, right to observe, that some adverbs are compared: as, far, farther, farthest; near, nearer, nearest. In comparing those which end in _ly_, we use _more_ and _most_: as, slowly, more slowly, most slowly.