The singular number denotes a single person or thing. The plural number denotes more than one person or thing.
The first person denotes the speaker; the second person denotes the person spoken to; the third person denotes the person or thing spoken of.
223. The inflections of person and number in verbs may be seen by framing sentences with the personal pronouns as subjects. Thus,—
| Present Tense | |
|---|---|
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| 1. I walk. | 1. We walk. |
| 2. Thou walk-est. | 2. You walk. |
| 3. He walk-s [old form, walk-eth]. | 3. They walk. |
| Past Tense | |
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| 1. I walked. | 1. We walked. |
| 2. Thou walked-st. | 2. You walked. |
| 3. He walked. | 3. They walked. |
From the sentences it is evident (1) that the person and number of a verb are usually shown by its subject only, but (2) that some verb-forms have special endings which denote person and number.
224. The endings by means of which a verb indicates person and number are called personal endings.
1. In the present tense a verb has two personal endings, est for the second person singular and s for the third person singular (old form eth).
The first person singular and all three persons of the plural are alike. The simplest form of the verb is used and no personal ending is added.
2. The past tense has but one personal ending,—est or st in the second person singular.[31]
The forms in est or st are confined to poetry and the solemn style. In ordinary language, the second person plural is used to address a single person.