chapter 12 Weak Adjectives; Participles; Comparison

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Chapter 12

Weak Adjectives; Participles; Comparison

Weak Declension of Adjectives

12.1. The "weak" adjectives are so called because they have fewer distinctive inflectional endings than the Strong adjectives. The strong and weak types fell together in ME; in MnE, adjectives have lost all inflection except that for comparison.

12.2. The Weak declension is used in four situations especially:

  1. When the adjective is preceded by a demonstrative (sometimes a possessive) pronoun;
  2. In direct address;
  3. Often in poetry where prose would normally use the strong forms;
  4. In the comparative degree and often in the superlative.
The Weak declension is also used for ordinal numbers except ǣrest, fyrmest, fyrst, first, which are declined both strong and weak; and ōðer, second which is declined strong only.

12.3.

Masc. _____ Neut. _____ Fem.
S.N.goodgōdagōdegōde
G._~ an~ an~ an
D.I._~ an~ an ~ an
A._~ an~ e ~ an
_ALL GENDERS
P.N.A.gōdan
G._~ ena, -ra
D.I.~ um

Note 1: The GenPl sometimes occurs in -ana, -an (conforming to the other cases); or in -na, and -a (conforming to noun endings). In later texts the case inflection -an sometimes appears as -on; and -um often becomes -un; -on.

Note 2: Adjectives ending in -h are contracted, with loss of the h: hēah, high: hēa, hēan, etc.; ðweorh, athwart: ðwēora, -e etc.; woh, wrong: wōna, etc. (See 10.2 Note 2, hēah, etc.)

12.4. The Demonstrative ilca, the same, is generally declined like a Weak adjective. Self (seolf, sylf), self, may be declined like either a Strong or a Weak adjective.

Declension of Participles

12.5. Participles may be inflected like either the Strong or the Weak adjective. The Presesnt Participle, when strong, is declined like a ja- (jō-) stem (grēne, 10.3.). The Past Participles are declined like a- (ō-) stems (til, gōd, 10.2.).

Comparison of Adjectives

12.6. Rule: The majority of OE adjectives form the comparative with -ra (˂ *-ora) and the superlative with -ost.

Examples:

cold,cealdcealdracealdost
poor,earmearmraearmost
hard,heardheardraheardost
loud,hlūdhlūdrahlūdost

12.7. A limited number of OE adjectives, however, form the comparative with -ra (˂ *-ira) and the superlative with -est (˂ *-ist); in these the i causes umlaut of the base vowel.

Examples:

old,ealdiealdraiealdest
easy,ēaðeīeðraīeðest
young,geonggiengragiengest
great,grēatgrīetragrīetest
high,hēahhīehra(hīerra)hīeh(e)st
long,longlengralengest
short,sceortsciertrasciertest

Note 3: The ending -ost (which is often represented by -ust, -ast) is occasionally transferred to umlauted forms; and -est is often found with the unumlauted forms, especially when these are inflected: heardesta, rīcestan, etc. (In other words, both umlauted and unumlauted forms exerted analogical attraction on each other.)

12.8. Some few comparatives and superlatives have no positive degree form but are based on corresponding adverbs or prepositions.

Examples:

near,nēahnēarranīehst
earlier,ǣrǣrraǣrest
before,forefurðrafyr(e)st

12.9. A trace of superlatives in -m survives in forma, the first, and hindema, the hindmost. But to this -m the regular ending -est has been added; the result is a (double) superlative ending -mest. These adjectives, also, are usually based upon adverbs or prepositions and usually have the comparative in -erra.

Examples:

late,sīðsīðrasīðemest, sīðest
late,lætlætralatemest, lætest
within,inneinn(er)rainnemest
without,ūteūt(er)ra, ȳttraȳtemest, ūtemest
above,ufanuferra, yfer(r)ayfemest, ufemest
below,niðanniðerraniðemest
after,æfteræfterraæftemest
northward,norðnorðra, nyrðranorðmest

Note 4: The MnE forms utmost, foremost, northmost, etc. have changed e ˃ o under the influence of the word most, which is also used for periphrastic comparison.

12.10. In the following list compensation is irregular: the base of the comparative and superlative forms differs from that of the positive. (In other words, the paradigm is composed by suppletion.)

Examples:

good,gōdbet(e)ra, bettrabet(e)st
evil,yfelwiersawierrest, wierst
great,micel māra, mǣra mǣst
little,lȳtel (lȳt) lǣssalǣs(e)st

Note 5: With gōd is to be associated (in meaning) the adverb sēl, better, comparative adj. sēlla, sēlra, superlative adj. sēlost, sēlest; and the adverb and substantive mā (mǣ), more, belongs to māra.

Translation: Luke IX, 12-13

Ðā gewāt se dæg forð. And hīe twelfe him genēahlǣhton and sǣdon him, "Lǣt þās menigu þæt hīe faren on þās castelu and on þās tūnas þe hēr ābūtan sind, and him mete finden, for þām þe wē sind hēr on wēstere stōwe."
Ðā cwæð hē tō him, "Sellaþ gē him etan." Ðā cwǣdon hīe, "We nabbaþ būtan fīf hlāfas and twēgen fiscas, būton wē gān and ūs mete bycgen and eallum þissum werode." Ðǣr wǣron nēah fīf þūsenda wera.

VOCABULARY
  1. ābūtan, about
  2. būton, except, only; unless
  3. bycgan, to buy
  4. castel, town
  5. cwǣdon, Past T of cweðan, to say
  6. faran, to go, to travel
  7. fisc, fish
  8. genēahlǣcan, to approach
  9. gewāt, Past T of gewītan, to depart, to go
  10. hlāf, loaf of bread

  11. lǣtan, to permit, to cause to
  12. mete, food
  13. nēah, nigh, near(ly)
  14. stōw, place
  15. sellan, to sell, to give
  16. tūn, village
  17. twēgen, two
  18. wer, man
  19. werod, multitude
  20. wēste, uninhabited, waste

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