Imperative Mood.
| PRESENT TENSE |
| Singular and Plural |
| Be. |
Remarks on the verb be.
239. This conjugation is pieced out with three different roots: (1) am, is; (2) was, were; (3) be.
Instead of the plural are, Old English had beoth and sind or sindon, same as the German sind. Are is supposed to have come from the Norse language.
The old indicative third person plural be is sometimes found in literature, though it is usually a dialect form; for example,—
Where be the sentries who used to salute as the Royal chariots drove in and out?—Thackeray
Where be the gloomy shades, and desolate mountains?—Whittier
Uses of be.