The history of Old English and its development
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As for weak adjectives, they also exist in the language. The thing is
that one need not learn by heart which adjective is which type - strong or
weak, as you should do with the nouns. If you have a weak noun as a
subject, its attributive adjective will be weak as well. So - a strong
adjective for a strong noun, a weak adjective for a weak noun, the rule is
as simple as that.
Thus if you say "a black tree" that will be blжc trйow (strong), and "a
black eye" will sound blace йage. Here is the weak declension example
(blaca - black):
Sg. Pl.
Masc. Neut. Fem.
N blaca blace blace blacan
G blacan blacan blacan blжcra
D blacan blacan blacan blacum
A blacan blace blacan blacan
Weak declension has a single plural for all genders, which is pleasant for those who don't want to remeber too many forms. In general, the weak declension is much easier.
The last thing to be said about the adjectives is the degrees of comparison. Again, the traditional Indo-European structure is preserved here: three degrees (absolutive, comparative, superlative) - though some languages also had the so-called "equalitative" grade; the special suffices for forming comparatives and absolutives; suppletive stems for several certain adjectives.
The suffices we are used to see in Modern English, those -er and -est in weak, weaker, the weakest, are the direct descendants of the Old English ones. At that time they sounded as -ra and -est. See the examples: earm (poor) - earmra - earmost
blжc (black) - blжcra - blacost
Many adjectives changed the root vowel - another example of the Germanic
ablaut:
eald (old) - ieldra - ieldest
strong - strengra - strengest
long - lengra - lengest
geong (young) - gingra - gingest
The most widespread and widely used adjectives always had their degrees formed from another stem, which is called "suppletive" in linguistics. Many of them are still seen in today's English: gуd (good) - betera - betst (or sйlra - sйlest)
yfel (bad) - wiersa - wierest
micel (much) - mбra - mбйst
lэtel (little) - lж'ssa - lж'st
fear (far) - fierra - fierrest, fyrrest
nйah (near) - nйarra - nнehst, nэhst
ж'r (early) - ж'rra - ж'rest
fore (before) - furюra - fyrest (first)
Now you see what the word "first" means - just the superlative degree
from the adjective "before, forward". The same is with nнehst from nйah
(near) which is now "next".
Old English affixation for adjectives:
1. -ede (group "adjective stem + substantive stem") - micelhйafdede
(large-headed)
2. -ihte (from substantives with mutation) - юirnihte (thorny)
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