Page:A Danish and Dano-Norwegian grammar.djvu/128

114 To this class also belongs the antiquated imperf. aatte ptc. aatt owned corresponding to the present inf. eie, regular impf. and ptc. eiede, eiet; also mon and monne used in antiquated style promiscuously as pres. or imperf. periphrastically with infinitives like English doth and did.

221. In colloquial language there is no distinction between singular and plural, the singular form being used with plural as well as with singular subjects. In written language the plural, form in the present tense is still retained by most Danish authors and according to official Danish rules of spelling, while most Norwegian authors and the official Norwegian rules of spelling have dropped the distinction between singular and plural. In the imperf. of the weak verbs there can be no distinction. In the imperf. of the strong verbs the rule is about the same as in the present, although the plural form of some verbs is avoided even by Danish authors as stated in §§ 216 note, 218 note. As a general rule it can be said that the imperf. plural is not formed whenever it would have the same form as the present plural. In poetry plural or singular forms are used promiscuously with a subject in the plural according to the necessities of prosody. Ex.: Kvinder selv stod op og strede (Bjørnson) even women arose and fought (arose to fight).

222. The present tense is often employed with future meaning, Ex.: jeg reiser imorgen I shall depart to-morrow;