[755.] nō ... meahte, none the sooner could he away. The omission of a verb of motion after the auxiliaries magan, mōtan, sculan, and willan is very frequent. Cf. Beowulf’s last utterance, [p. 147, l. 17].
[768.] The lines that immediately follow constitute a fine bit of description by indication of effects. The two contestants are withdrawn from our sight; but we hear the sound of the fray crashing through the massive old hall, which trembles as in a blast; we see the terror depicted on the faces of the Danes as they listen to the strange sounds that issue from their former banqueting hall; by these sounds we, too, measure the progress and alternations of the combat. At last we hear only the “terror-lay” of Grendel, “lay of the beaten,” and know that Beowulf has made good his promise at the banquet (gilp gelǣsted).
[769.] cēnra gehwylcum. The indefinite pronouns ([§ 77]) may be used as adjectives, agreeing in case with their nouns; but they frequently, as here, take a partitive genitive: ānra gehwylcum, to each one (= to each of ones); ǣnige (instrumental) þinga, for any thing (= for any of things); on healfa gehwone, into halves (= into each of halves); ealra dōgra gehwām, every day (= on each of all days); ūhtna gehwylce, every morning (= on each of mornings).
[780.] Notice that hit, the object of tōbrecan, stands for wīn-sęle, which is masculine. See [p. 39, Note 2]. Manna is genitive after gemete, not after ǣnig.
[787-89.] gryre-lēoð ... hæfton [= hæftan]. Note that verbs of hearing and seeing, as in Mn.E., may be followed by the infinitive. They heard God’s adversary sing (galan) ... hell’s captive bewail (wānigean). Had the present participle been used, the effect would have been, as in Mn.E., to emphasize the agent (the subject of the infinitive) rather than the action (the infinitive itself).
[795-96.] þǣr ... lāfe. Beowulf’s followers now seem to have seized their swords and come to his aid, not knowing that Grendel, having forsworn war-weapons himself, is proof against the best of swords. Then many an earl of Beowulf’s (= an earl of B. very often) brandished his sword. That no definite earl is meant is shown by the succeeding hīe meahton instead of hē meahte. See [p. 110, Note].
[799.] They did not know this (ðæt), while they were fighting; but the first Hīe refers to the warriors who proffered help; the second hīe, to the combatants, Beowulf and Grendel. In apposition with ðǣt, stands the whole clause, þone synscaðan (object of grētan) ... nolde. The second, or conjunctional, ðæt is here omitted before þone. See [p. 112, note on ll. 18-19].
[837.] grāpe = genitive singular, feminine, after eal.
[1] = ealdor-.
[2] = Heorote.