PUERI ROMANI IN LUDO
[ LESSON XIX]
THE FOUR REGULAR CONJUGATIONS · PRESENT ACTIVE INDICATIVE OF AMŌ AND MONEŌ
[126.] There are four conjugations of the regular verbs. These conjugations are distinguished from each other by the final vowel of the present conjugation-stem.1 This vowel is called the distinguishing vowel, and is best seen in the present infinitive.
1. The stem is the body of a word to which the terminations are attached. It is often identical with the base (cf. [§ 58]). If, however, the stem ends in a vowel, the latter does not appear in the base, but is variously combined with the inflectional terminations. This point is further explained in [§ 230].
Below is given the present infinitive of a verb of each conjugation, the present stem, and the distinguishing vowel.
| Conjugation | Pres. Infin. | Pres. Stem |
DISTINGUISHING VOWEL |
|---|---|---|---|
| I. | amā´re, to love | amā- | ā |
| II. | monē´re, to advise | monē- | ē |
| III. | re´gĕre, to rule | regĕ- | ĕ |
| IV. | audī´re, to hear | audi- | ī |
a. Note that the present stem of each conjugation is found by dropping -re, the ending of the present infinitive.
Note. The present infinitive of sum is esse, and es- is the present stem.
[127.] From the present stem are formed the present, imperfect, and future tenses.