Rommie Posted 22 years ago
Grammar
A question cometh.
This is actually two questions, which I've lumped together. The first concerns the -eth suffix, the second concerns the -est suffix.
(1) I am aware of the difference in MEANING between "a question is coming" and "a question cometh", which is that the latter conveys a feeling of inexorability, of unstoppability, whereas the former is just an indicative statement. (At least, I THINK that's the difference). But my question is ... what's going on here grammatically? Is the -eth suffix a "mood" which no longer exists in modern English? Is it a tense? Does it have a formal definition? What? I hope an answer cometh.
(2) I have a similar question relating to the "-est" suffix, as in for example the sentence "LOBBEST thou thy Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch towards thy foe".
Can anyone shed any light on either -eth or -est or both?
Rommie
(1) I am aware of the difference in MEANING between "a question is coming" and "a question cometh", which is that the latter conveys a feeling of inexorability, of unstoppability, whereas the former is just an indicative statement. (At least, I THINK that's the difference). But my question is ... what's going on here grammatically? Is the -eth suffix a "mood" which no longer exists in modern English? Is it a tense? Does it have a formal definition? What? I hope an answer cometh.
(2) I have a similar question relating to the "-est" suffix, as in for example the sentence "LOBBEST thou thy Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch towards thy foe".
Can anyone shed any light on either -eth or -est or both?
Rommie
Top answer
An interesting question with (in my opinion) a simple answer! No, they're certainly not tenses, simply archaic forms of the present tense. (You'll probably have noticed by now that I tend to keep things short and sweet) Chris
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An interesting question with (in my opinion) a simple answer!
No, they're certainly not tenses, simply archaic forms of the present tense.
(You'll probably have noticed by now that I tend to keep things short and sweet)
Chris
No, they're certainly not tenses, simply archaic forms of the present tense.
(You'll probably have noticed by now that I tend to keep things short and sweet)
Chris
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I'm not convinced. The -est suffix appears to imply imperative mood to me, wherase -eth doesn't. (This is all supposition of course. I don't know for sure, or I wouldn't be asking).
Hey, does anyone know of any handy web sites which focus on the use of old English?
Rommie
Hey, does anyone know of any handy web sites which focus on the use of old English?
Rommie
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