Example 4 is fair; but cake must have butter or eggs, neither of which is in bread.

Good Definitions.

For examples of good definitions, look up in a dictionary the words for which faulty definitions have just been given, and other words whose meaning you are familiar with, but whose definitions you find difficulty in stating accurately.

EXERCISES IN DEFINITION.

Define accurately the following words :

Definition. The pupil has been advised to make constant and careful reference to the dictionary. He has been told to notice the derivation of English words from words in foreign languages. If he pays attention to the advice, he will often find that the derivation of a word is sufficient to explain its meaning. For example, the word biography is derived from two Greek words, Bios (bios, life) and ypápew (graphein, to write). When one knows this, no further definition is needed in order to understand the meaning of biography. Expire is from the Latin ex (out) and spirare (to breathe); antecedent, from ante (before) and cedere (to go). Somnambulist is from two Latin words, meaning sleep and walk. The

study of words, and of their formation from other words or roots of the same or a foreign language, is called etymology. The aim of the study is to enable one to divide any word into its parts, separating the root, or stem, on which the word is built, from the terminations or prefixes which are added to the root, and from the meaning of its parts to derive the meaning of the word.

Changes in Meaning of Words. There are, however, many English words whose meaning is no longer that denoted by their derivation. For example, the word prevent originally meant to go before, and was so used for a long while by English authors. Prevent now means to hinder or to frustrate. In studying etymology, one must bear in mind that the sense in which a word is used by the best authors determines the meaning of -that word.

Although the present use of eminent writers is the only criterion for our choice of words, we must remember that these writers have secured eminence only because of their power to present their thoughts in the English language in such a way as to be readily understood. Consequently they must have changed the meaning of a word, or coined a new word, only when the needs of the language demanded such changes or additions, and only in such ways as added to the intelligibility of the writer's sentences. As the usage of such writers has always been the standard, it follows that the meaning of most words is that denoted by their derivation. Hence we must admit the importance of etymology to aid us in the right use of words, even though the etymological meaning of a few words has been altered.

Philology. In its widest extent, etymology embraces a complete knowledge of all the languages from which. any English words have been derived, and also of all languages in which we find words related to English words. In order to understand the meaning of what has just been said of the relations of words, the pupil must know something of the discoveries that have been made in philology, or the study of language.

The Indo-European Family. - Marked resemblances among most of the ancient and modern languages of Europe, Persia, and India, indicate that they are derived from a single language spoken in prehistoric times by a race which we call the INDO-EUROPEAN, or ARYAN, race.

Though it has not been possible to decide where the race was originally located, it is clear that successive emigrations from its home have carried the Aryan race and speech to India, Persia, and all parts of Europe. The varying influences to which the different portions of the race were subjected after their separation from the main body, at a time before language had been reduced to writing, will account for all the differences existing to-day among the languages of the Aryan family; while the resemblances can be accounted for on no hypothesis except that of a common origin.

Philologists have not yet agreed upon the order in time in which these nations left the Aryan center; but a still greater similarity existing between the languages of groups of nations proves that the members of each of these groups, after their separation from the original race, remained together for a long time before they became separate nations. In case of the most recent migrations of the tribes of Europe, the

records of history agree with the results of the scientific study of language.

The following table exhibits the main groups of the Indo-European family and the principal members of each group:

THE INDO-EUROPEAN, OR ARYAN, languagES.

Main Branches.

I. INDIAN.

2. PERSIAN.

3. GREEK.

4. ITALIC.

5. CELTIC.

6. TEUTONIC.

7. BALTIC.
8. SLAVONIC.

Principal Language of Each Branch.

The ancient and modern languages of India. Sanskrit, preserved in the Vedic texts, is especially important in the study of philology.

The ancient and modern languages of Persia.
Ancient and modern Greek.

Latin, and the Romance languages (derived from the language of Rome); viz., Italian, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

All the original languages of western Europe and the British Isles. The Welsh language and the native dialects of Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Brittany, are the only living representatives of the Celtic branch.

Gothic, Icelandic, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, German, Dutch, and Anglo-Saxon, or English.

Lithuanian, Prussian, and Lettish.

Russian, Bulgarian, Servian, Croatian, and Slovenian.

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Cognate Words. As has been said, in every member of this family of languages there are found words having a strong resemblance to words expressing the same idea. in other languages of this family. The words which

exhibit the most striking resemblance are those used in the commonest affairs of life. When we look up brother in an unabridged dictionary, we find, amongst other matter in brackets after the word, Anglo-Saxon, brōdor; Dutch, broeder; German, bruder; Danish, broder; Gothic, brothar; Lithuanian, brolis; Russian, brať'; Latin, frater; Greek, opáτnρ (frater).

These are the words expressing the same or a kindred idea in the languages mentioned. They are called allied, or cognate, words. The English word brother is not derived from the Latin frater, or the German bruder, nor, except in case of the Anglo-Saxon and English, which are earlier and later forms of the same language, is any one of these words derived from any other; but all are simply the alterations which one word of the original Indo-European language has undergone in the speech of the nations descended from it and separated from each other.

Derived Words. When, however, we look up the English word fraternal in the dictionary, we find that it comes from Latin fraternalis, from fraternus. This means that some time during the history of the English language the Latin word fraternalis has been taken into the English in the form of fraternal, and we say that fraternal is derived from the Latin fraternalis.

ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

Knowledge of History Necessary. — Many English words have been taken from other languages; and in order satisfactorily to appreciate the study of English etymology, it is necessary to know a few facts of history that will explain how these words have come into the