[147] Mätzner, vol. ii., p. 143 (edit. 1864).
[148] In Hungarian, the plural ending is -k. But many nouns are thought of as collectives, and have no plural. And if the noun be preceded by a numeral, or by an adjective or pronoun of quantity, it does not take the plural form unless the number embraces the whole; as, tiz apostol (ten apostles), but á tizenket apostolok (the twelve apostles). In the former case, the individuals are thought of indefinitely, and so the sense of the individual is weak; in the latter case, definitely, and therefore it is strong. Byrne, Principles of the Structure of Language, vol. i., p. 435.
[149] Accius apud Non., iii. 65.
[150] Cf. Roby, vol. ii., p. 183.
[151] On ‘abstract’ v. ‘concrete,’ see p. 45.
[152] Accordingly, in Welsh, the noun is invariably in the singular when preceded by a numeral.
[153] On ‘abstract’ v. ‘concrete,’ see p. 45.
[154] In a sentence like I am going out; I thought you were, even the past tense refers to future.
[155] Cf. Storm, p. 217, for other instances, such as Sit you down (Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, 366), etc.
[156] Cf. Earle (Philology of the English Tongue, p. 536), who cites these phrases as provincialisms to be heard in all classes of society in Yorkshire. Every careful speaker will agree with him in deeming them “one of the finest of our provincialisms.”