Dwustu, two hundred.' N. dwustu (a), dwieście (d). G. dwóchset. D. dwómset. A. dwóchset (a), dwieście (d). For the others, e.g. 500, take the word pięc, as previously declined, and add in each case set. The ordinal numbers are not given here, as they are inflected like adjectives, and can be easily learned from a dictionary. In the Slavonic languages we also find collective numerals, as czworo, a collection of four;' piecioro dzieci, a band of five children.' Cf. English, 'a dozen,' " a score.' These collective numerals take for the most part the genitive case after them. The abridged forms of the pronouns are only used after verbs, and cannot be employed after prepositions, or when emphasis is to be laid upon the pronoun. The pronoun niego is sometimes changed into ń in the genitive and accusative, and is united with the preposition, as dlan for 'him;' so also the pronoun ci is changed into c, and is attached to a previous word ending in a vowel. The pronoun siebie, się is reflexive: it is used to express the singular and the plural of all three genders, and may refer to all three persons. The POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS are declined like adjectives, as mój, 'my, twój, 'thy;' for the third person the genitive singular and plural of the personal pronoun is used, as jego, ich. Kto, co, który, która, które are both relatives and interrogatives. Kto refers to masculines and feminines; co to animals and inanimate things: they have no plural. Który is declined like an adjective, the only irregularity being którzy for the masculine nominative plural. The NEGATIVE PRONOUNS when employed with verbs require also the use of the negative particle. Several letters and words may be added to pronouns, which have the effect of modifying their meanings, as ś, kolwick, li, lito, ż, że, żetoś and kolwiek are added only to pronouns, as ktoś, jakis, ktokolwiek, &c.; li, lito, ż, że, że to are added not only to pronouns but to adjectives. THE VERBS. Since a great object has been simplification as much as possible, I shall here only enumerate the chief divisions of the verbs : 1. Active. 2. Passive. In reality there is no independent form of the passive voice in Polish. It is made, as in most modern European languages, by the auxiliaries and the past participle. See, however, on p. 49 as to the various ways of expressing this voice. 3. Neuter. 4. Impersonal. 5. Perfect, sometimes called Completive Verbs, which express the action as finished; e.g., zjadłem, 'I have ceased eating.' 6. Imperfect, or Continuative Verbs, which express the duration of the action; e.g., jem, 'I continue to eat.' 7. Inceptives, which express an increasing action; as starzeję się, 'I grow old.' |