Why do you call the word prince a noun of the masculine gender?

Because the word prince is a name which stands for a male, and therefore a noun of the masculine gender. Why do you call the word father a noun of the masculine gender?

Because the word father is a name which stands for a

male, and therefore a noun of the masculine gender. Why do you call the word son a noun of the masculine gender?

Because the word son is a name which stands for a male, and therefore a noun of the masculine gender.

FEMININE.

When is a noun said to be Feminine?

When the noun stands only for a female it is said to be feminine; from the Latin word femina, a woman.

Give me instances of nouns of feminine gender. The words, Queen, Princess, Mother, Daughter, are nouns of the feminine gender.

Why do you call the word queen a noun of the feminine gender?

Because the word queen is a name which stands for a female, and therefore a noun of the feminine gender.

Why do you call the word princess a noun of the feminine gender?

Because the word princess is a name which stands for a female, and therefore a noun of the feminine gender. Why do you call the word mother a noun of the feminine gender?

Because the word mother is a name which stands for a female, and therefore a noun of the feminine gender.

Why do you call the word daughter a noun of the feminine gender?

Because the word daughter is a name which stands for a female, and therefore a noun of the feminine gender.

NEUTER.

When is a noun said to be of the Neuter gender?

When the noun does not stand either for a male or for a female; from the Latin word neuter, which means neither.

What kind of nouns would generally be of the neuter gender?

Those nouns which refer to things not having life.

Give me instances of nouns of the neuter gender, and referring to things having no life.

Pens, Ink, Paper, are nouns of neuter gender.

Why do you call the word pen a noun of the neuter gender?

Because it stands for that which has no life, and is neither male nor female.

When is a noun said to be of the Common gender?

A noun is said to be of the common gender when it may be used to represent either a male or female, without saying which.

Give me instances of nouns of the common gender.

Parent, Child, Orphan, Relative, and Sheep, are nouns of the common gender.

Why is the word parent a noun of the common gender?

Because it may refer to either male or female; that is, a father or mother.

Note.-Other instances might be given, but the teacher will find it far better to let the pupils make for themselves a list of nouns under each head; this requiring a little reflective thought, cannot fail to be beneficial. The teacher should carefully look through the list, and if any one noun be wrongly placed, let the pupil be so questioned as to the definition belonging to the head of the list in which the noun may be found, that he may discover the error of place; but by no means should he be told to which list the nouns properly belong. Let the pupil give the noun a place, as the result of his own judgment; and if he judge wrongly, let it pass in review, again and again, till he judge rightly; giving also right reasons for his decision.

Have you anything further to observe with regard to nouns of the neuter gender?

Yes by a figure of speech some nouns of neuter gender are spoken of as masculine or feminine.

Passing on from the subject of Gender, our next step referring to the Tree (or Diagram, which is the Frontispiece), will be the consideration of Number.

NUMBER.

What is the meaning of the word Number?

Number means what may be counted, and comes from the Latin word numero, to count, or to number.

What information can you give concerning number? Number is divided into singular and plural; and nouns arranged under one or other of those heads would be called, nouns singular, or nouns plural, as the case may be.

SINGULAR.

What do you mean by the word Singular ?

The word singular, as applied to nouns, means one, and is derived from the Latin word singulus, one by one; and

a noun is said to be a noun of the singular number,
when it refers only to one.

Mention some nouns of the singular number.
King, Queen, Pen, Parent.

Why do you name the word king as an instance of a noun of the singular number?

Because the word king is a name applied to one individual, and therefore a noun of the singular number.

Note.-Let the other nouns in the previous answer be subjects for questions in the same way as the word king.

PLURAL.

What do you mean by the word Plural ?

The word plural, as applied to nouns, signifies more than one; from the Latin word plus, more.

When is a noun said to be of the plural number? A noun is said to be a noun of the plural number when it includes more than one.

Name instances of nouns of the plural number.
Kings, Queens, Pens, Parents.

Why do you name the word kings as an instance of a noun of the plural number ?

Because the word kings includes or signifies more than one king, and for that reason it is called a noun of the plural number.

I see you have added the letter s to the nouns you have previously given. If I add the letter s to all nouns of the singular number, will it transform them into nouns of the plural number? No; nouns of the singular number become nouns of the plural number in various ways.

Give me a few instances of the various ways in which nouns singular are transformed into nouns plural.

Nouns singular become plural by the addition of es; as Church-Churches. Sometimes by the addition of en;

as Ox-Oxen.

Besides adding es and en, are there

by which the plural is formed?

any other ways

Yes; sometimes letters are changed; as ƒ into v, in life, making lives; also y into ie, when it follows a consonant, as in fly, making flies; and sometimes the plural is formed by using a different word.

Give me instances of the plural formed by different words.

Men is the plural form of the singular noun man.
Feet is the plural form of the singular noun foot.

Mice is the plural form of the singular noun mouse. You have said so much about nouns singular and nouns plural-am I to understand that all nouns are divided into singular and plural ? No; there are some nouns which have no plural form; some which have no singular form; some which may be used as singular or plural; and some, though including many, may be of the singular or plural number, according to the idea intended to be conveyed.

Give me instances of nouns which have no plural form.

Bread and silver, are nouns of the singular number, and include all to which the names can be applied.

Give me instances of nouns which have no singular. Bellows, tongs, scissors, and riches, are nouns made up of

parts, and so could not possibly have a singular form.