The part of speech to which any word belongs, is ascertained, not by the
_original_ signification of that word, but by its present _manner_ of
meaning, or, rather, _the office which it performs in a sentence_.
The various ways in which a word is applied to the idea which it
represents, are called its _manner of meaning_. Thus, The painter dips
his _paint_ brush in _paint_, to _paint_ the carriage. Here, the word
_paint_, is first employed to _describe_ the brush which the painter
uses; in this situation it is, therefore, an _adjective_; secondly, to
_name_ the mixture employed; for which reason it is a _noun_; and,
lastly, to _express the action_ performed; it therefore, becomes a
_verb_; and yet, the meaning of the word is the same in all these
applications. This meaning, however, is applied in different ways; and
thus the same word becomes different parts of speech. Richard took
_water_ from the _water_ pot, to _water_ the plants.
ETYMOLOGY.
Etymology treats, first, of the _classification_ of words.
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE is derived chiefly from the Saxon, Danish, Celtic,
and Gothic; but in the progressive stages of its refinement, it has been
greatly enriched by accessions from the Greek, Latin, French, Spanish,
Italian, and German languages.
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