[Sidenote:  Verbal abstract nouns.]

II.  The VERBAL ABSTRACT NOUNS Originate in verbs, as their name implies.  They may be—­

(1) Of the same form as the simple verb.  The verb, by altering its function, is used as a noun; as in the expressions, “a long run” “a bold move,” “a brisk walk.”

(2) Derived from verbs by changing the ending or adding a suffix:  motion from move, speech from speak, theft from thieve, action from act, service from serve.

[Sidenote:  Caution.]

(3) Derived from verbs by adding _-ing_ to the simple verb.  It must be remembered that these words are free from any verbal function.  They cannot govern a word, and they cannot express action, but are merely names of actions.  They are only the husks of verbs, and are to be rigidly distinguished from gerunds (Secs. 272, 273).

To avoid difficulty, study carefully these examples: 

The best thoughts and sayings of the Greeks; the moon caused fearful forebodings; in the beginning of his life; he spread his blessings over the land; the great Puritan awakening; our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; a wedding or a festival; the rude drawings of the book; masterpieces of the Socratic reasoning; the teachings of the High Spirit; those opinions and feelings; there is time for such reasonings; the well-being of her subjects; her longing for their favor; feelings which their original meaning will by no means justify; the main bearings of this matter.

[Sidenote:  Underived abstract nouns.]

12.  Some abstract nouns were not derived from any other part of speech, but were framed directly for the expression of certain ideas or phenomena.  Such are beauty, joy, hope, ease, energy; day, night, summer, winter; shadow, lightning, thunder, etc.

The adjectives or verbs corresponding to these are either themselves derived from the nouns or are totally different words; as glad—­joy, hopeful—­hope, etc.

Exercises.

1.  From your reading bring up sentences containing ten common nouns, five proper, five abstract.

—­NOTE.—­Remember that all sentences are to be selected from standard literature.

2.  Under what class of nouns would you place (a) the names of diseases, as pneumonia, pleurisy, catarrh, typhus, diphtheria; (b) branches of knowledge, as physics, algebra, geology, mathematics?

3.  Mention collective nouns that will embrace groups of each of the following individual nouns:—­