474. for. A.-S. for, on account of,' 'because of.' fore. A.-S. foran, 'before."

Wedgwood, in his Dictionary of English Etymology, classes for and fore together. He compares the Gothic faur, faura, and the Old Norse fyrir, before,' 'fore, 'for,' with the German vor, 'for,' and für,' for.' He thinks the radical meaning in both cases is 'in front of.' Like the Latin præ and pro, the particles for and fore may be connected etymologically; indeed, they may originally have been the same word. But their difference in usage must be observed; and, in composition, both must be carefully distinguished from the inseparable prefix for, as in forgive, for-get, for-lorn.

In English the preposition in is used much more widely than in Anglo-Saxon. I have remarked that the people of Cork retain many old uses of the form on, as, 'He lives on the South Mall,' 'I saw that report on the "Constitution" (newspaper).' So in Italian, 'Si legge sui giornali.'

476. of. A.-S. of, 'of,' 'from,' out of,' 'concerning.'

Of is used to denote what is called the genitive case in Greek and Latin. It expresses a variety of relations.

(1) Sometimes it has a partitive meaning, that is, it denotes the relation of a part or parts to the whole, as 'the wing of an eagle,' 'the walls of the town.'

(2) Sometimes it is used in connection with the properties or qualities of an object: as, 'the length of the room,' 'the strength of a lion,' 'the sweetness of honey,' 'the height of the mountain.'

(3) Sometimes it has an objective force: as, the love of our neighbour,' meaning, 'love towards our neighbour.'

Obs.-There may be an ambiguity in the use of this preposition. For example, the love of God' may signify either 'the love exhibited by God towards man,' or 'the love felt by man towards God.' The former may be otherwise rendered 'God's love,' but not the latter.

(4) Of has sometimes an adjective meaning: as, 'a crown of gold,' for a golden crown;' an act of grace,' for 'a gracious act.'

(5) Of is sometimes used to connect nouns in apposition: as, 'the city of London,' 'the city of Rome (urbs Roma). See § 143; and compare Bain, English Grammar, p. 48.

This preposition is sometimes contracted to o': as, 'one o'clock,' for one of the clock.'

over. A.-S. ofer, 'over,' 'above,' 'upon,' ' beside,' 'beyond.' Dutch, over. German, über.

out. A.-S. ut, ute, 'out,' 'without.'

This preposition is constantly used in composition: as,

' turn out,' 'send out.' But it is not found alone before nouns; though 'out of' and' out from' are usual. 477. since.

In Anglo-Saxon we find the adjective sid, 'late,' and an adverb of the same form, 'lately.' We also find siððan 'afterwards,'' after that,' 'then,'' since,' 'further.' In Old English we meet with the forms sith, sithen, sin (Scottish syne), sithence; and from the last our English since appears to have come. The old forms were never used as prepositions; but the English since, though commonly used as a conjunction, has a true prepositional force in such sentences as these: 'I have not seen him since Tuesday,' 'I have not heard of them since last Christmas.' See § 463.

through. A.-S. thurh, 'through,' 'by.'

478. till. A.-S. til.

The English till is not used with words denoting motion to a place; we cannot say, with the Scots, 'he's ganging till Montrose.' Its use in English is chiefly confined to relations of time. Until appears to be compounded of 'on-till,' and used to be written 'untill.'

'Dr. Grimm remarks that the English until, "donec," "usque," though Old English (and not Anglo-Saxon, which uses ob), appears to be a real Danish form.'-Bosworth, Anglo-Saxon Dictionary.

to. A.-S. to, 'to,' 'towards,' ' for.'

under. A.-S. under; German unter.

up. A.-S. up; German auf.

with. A.-S. wið.

The Anglo-Saxon wit has several meanings: (1) against,' 'opposite;' (2) 'near,' 'about,' 'by,' 'before;' (3) 'towards,' 'with,' 'for,' 'through.'

The usual signification in English is 'together with,' denoting companionship as,

Shylock. I will buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with you, and so following; but I will not eat with you, drink with you, nor pray with you.

Merchant of Venice, i. 3.

It is also employed to denote agency or instrumentality: as, fed with the same food,' 'hurt with the same weapons.' More commonly by is used to denote agency, with to express instrumentality: as, 'the field was dug by the labourer, with his spade.'

Other prepositions are formed by combining two simple prepositions together; as in-to, un-to (i.e. on-to), un-til (i.e. on-till), up-on, with-in, with-out, through-out, out of, out from.

479. Some prepositions exhibit a derivative form, especially those which are made by help of the prefixes a ('on,' 'in,) and be (by'). These are found in composition with

prepositions, nouns, and even adjectives, something like our phrases in vain,' 'in secret.'

We have a-baft, a-bout, a-bove, a-gainst, a-long, a-mid, a-mong, a-round, a-thwart; be-fore, be-hind, be-low, be-neath, be-side, be-tween, be-twixt, be-yond.

480. a-baft. A.-S. aftan, be-æftan, bæftan, after,' 'behind. Hence on-baftan,'' abaft,' literally 'on-by-aft.' Every man shewid his connyng tofore the ship and baft. Chaucer.

a-bout. A.-S. abutan. From A.-S. utan we find be-utan ('by-out') and butan; on-butan ('on-by-out') and a-butan.

above. A.-S. a-bufan. From A.-S. ufan we find be-ufan ('by-up'), bufan, and a-bufan.

against. From a-gain, Old English a-gen. From A.-S. simpler forms gean and gegen, opposite,' we find ongean, on-gegen. In modern English a-gain has lost its prepositional force, remaining in use as an adverb. a-long. There are two words of this form : (1) a-long, A.-S. and-lang, German, ent-langen.

Here

lang is originally an adjective agreeing with the noun, which is governed by the preposition and, through ;' as and langne dæg,' through the long day,'' through the length of the day.' The adjective has been absorbed by the preposition. Compare a-mid. (2) a-long, from A.-S. ge-lang, 'owing to,' as in the phrase 'it is along of you.' So Shakespeare, All this coil is long of you.

a-mid.

Midsummer Night's Dream, iii. 2.

There is another instance in which an adjective has been absorbed, or attracted, by a preposition. A.-S. midd is an adjective, 'middle' thus,

On middre nihte, 'at mid night.'

On midne dæg, 'at mid day.'

On midre sæ, 'in mid sea,' 'in the middle of the sea.'

On middan thære ea, ' in middle the water,' 'in the middle of the water,'' amid the water.'

In this last sentence observe the position of the article there between the adjective and the noun. Compare the remarks on 'many a youth,' §§ 296–303.

N

a-mong.

Dr. Bosworth gives the following forms of the A.-S. preposition: ge-mang, ge-mong, a-mang, on-mang. There is a noun ge-mang, ' mixture,' and a verb mengan, 'to mingle, mix.' It is possible that a-mong originally signified in the mixed multitude;' but the word requires further investigation.

a-round, 'on round.' Here we have a preposition with an adjective; compare the phrases 'in vain,' 'in secret.' So Lydgate, speaking of his youthful days: Lik a young colt that ran withowte brydil, Made my freendys ther good to spend in ydil. 'In idle' means 'in vain,' 'to no purpose.' The adjective 'round' is from the French rond, Latin rotundus. I do not think that around' is derived from A.-S. rand, rond, 'rim,' 'border.' The sense would hardly favour that derivation; and we may remark that the A.-S. preposition used in this signification was ymb, German um.

a-thwart. This appears to be another case of a preposition and an adjective. The A.-S. adjective thweor, thweorh, thwir, thwyr, thwer, thwur, thwurh, signifies 'crooked,' 'cross,' 'wicked,' 'thwart;' and Dr. Bosworth gives the phrase on thweorh sprecan 'perversely speak,' that is, speak athwart.' Mr. Wedgwood compares the Old Norse um thvert, 'across,' 'athwart.'

481. We have now to consider prepositions exhibiting the prefix be-, 'by.' This prefix is the Anglo-Saxon preposition be, bi, big, 'by, near to, to, at, upon, about, with.' We find it prefixed to a preposition, as 'be-fore;' to a noun, as 'beside;' to an adjective, as 'be-low.'

be-fore. A.-S. be-foran, 'by-fore.'
be-hind. A.-S. be-hindan, 'by-hind.'

be-low, 'by-low:' compare 'on high.'

be-neath. A.-S. be-neod, be-neoðan, be-nyðan, 'by-neath;' neoðan signifies 'down,' 'downwards.'

be-side, by side.'

be-tween, by twain,' that is near two.' The notion is, that if a thing is between two others, it is near both. be-twixt. A.-S. be-twuh, be-twy, be-twih, be-twyh, be-tweoh,

be-tweohs, be-tweox, be-twux, be twuxt. In Anglo-

Saxon, h appears to have had a guttural sound; hence, hs are equivalent to x.

Mr. Wedgwood says, 'The A.-S. has tweoh, a different form of twa, "two;" and thence twegen, "twain." From the former of these are A.-S. betwuh, betweoh, betweohs, betweox, betwuxt, "by two," in the middle of two;" which may be compared, as to form, with amid, A.-S. amiddes, amidst, or with again, against. In like manner from twain is formed between, "in the middle of twain."

'The Ile of Man that me clepeth

By twene us and Irlonde.'

Robert of Gloucester.

'The Isle of Man that man calleth

By twain us and Ireland.'

See Wedgwood, Dictionary of English Etymology, between.'

be-yond. A.-S. be-geond, be-geondan, be-iundun, 'byyond,' 'by-yonder.' Geond, as a preposition, signifies through, over, after, beyond;' and as an adverb, 'yond, yonder, thither, beyond.'

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482. The following words are used as prepositions. They are derived from verbs, either from the imperative mood, or from the form in -ing.

From the imperative: except, save.

From the form in -ing: bating, concerning, during, ex

cepting, pending, respecting, regarding, notwithstanding. It is difficult to say whether the form in -ing, here used, is participial or gerundial; or whether some of these words are used in one construction, others in another. We might consider during and pending to be participial, and to have arisen from an absolute construction: 'pending the battle' (pendente prælio), while the battle was hanging in doubt;' during the fight,' that is, 'while the fight lasted.'

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SO

But this explanation would not suit concerning,'' excepting,' 'regarding.' Wickliffe, who uses 'out-take' far except, employs the passive participle in an absolute construction: "out-taken women and little children,' that is, 'excepted women and little children.'

I incline to think that we have borrowed this use of the active participle from the Norman French. We have for example in passing,' en passant, a construction which furnishes grammatical difficulty both in French and English.