Grammatical change from Middle English to Early Modern English

These translations of the Christian bible from the 14th century through the twentieth century illustrate some of the main grammatical changes.

The symbol {+s} stands for the `long s' (eafily confufed with <f>!). The symbol {+g} stands for ‘yogh’.

Questions

WYCLIFFITE: PURVEY (14TH CENTURY)

But and the serpent was feller than alle lyuynge beestis of erthe, whiche the Lord God hadde maad.

Which serpent seide to the womman, `Why comaundide God to {+g}ou, that {+g}e schulden not ete of ech tre of paradis?'

RSV (1952)

Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the LORD God had made.

He said to the woman, `Did God say, "You shall not eat of any tree of the garden"'?

Prepositions/verb tense sequence

PURVEY‑WYCLIFFITE (14th CENTURY)

And the noumbre of men that eten was fyue thousynde of men, outakun wymmen and lytle children.

TYNDALE (1534)

And they that ate, were in nombre about v M men, besyde wemen and chyldren.

WITHAM (1730)

Now the Number of tho{+s}e that eat, were five thou{+s}and Men, be{+s}ides women, and Children.

WESLEY (1755)

And they that had eaten were about five thou{+s}and, be{+s}ide women and children.

BASIC ENGLISH (1949)

And those who had food were about five thousand men, in addition to women and children.

Auxiliaries with intransitive verbs/adjective endings

PURVEY‑WYCLIFFITE (14th CENTURY)

But whanne the euentide was com, hise disciplis camen to him, and seiden, " The place is desert, and the tyme is now passid;

WITHAM (1730)

Now the Evening being come, his Di{+s}ciples came to him, {+s}aying: This is a de{+s}ert Place, and the Hour is now pa{+s}t,

RIVERSIDE (1932)

When evening had come on, his disciples came to him and said, `This is an uninhabited place and the time is already late;

NEB (1961)

When it grew late the disciples came up to him and said, `This is a lonely place, and the day has gone;

Variant forms of irregular verbs/phrasal verbs

PURVEY‑WYCLIFFITE (14th CENTURY)

And whanne he hadde comaundid the puple to sitte to meete on the heye, he took fyue looues and twei fischis,

and he bihelde in to heuene, and blesside, and brak, and {+g}af to hise disciplis; and the disciplis {+g}auen to the puple.

TYNDALE (1534)

And he commaunded the people to syt downe on the grasse: and toke the v loves, and the ii fysshes

and loked vp to heven and blessed, and brake and gave the loves to his disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.

WITHAM (1730)

And when he had Commanded the Multitude to place them{+s}elves on the Gra{+s}s, having taken the five Loaves, and two Fishes,

and looking up to Heaven, he ble{+s}{+s}ed, and broke, and gave the Loaves to his Di{+s}ciples, and the Di{+s}ciples to the People.

WESLEY (1755)

And he commanded the multitude to {+s}it down on the gra{+s}s; and taking the five loaves and the two fi{+s}hes,

looking up to heaven, he ble{+s}{+s}ed and brake, and gave the loaves to his di{+s}ciples, and the di{+s}ciples to the multitude.

WEBSTER (1833)

And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes,

and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and broke, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.

RIVERSIDE (1932)

Then he commanded the crowd to recline on the grass, and he took the five loaves and the two fishes

and looked up to heaven and asked a blessing.

Then he broke up the loaves and gave them to his disciples, and the disciples distributed to the crowd.

Irregular verb forms/imperative/case with BE

PURVEY‑WYCLIFFITE (14th CENTURY)

And anoon Jhesus spac to hem, and seide, `Haue {+g}e trust, Y am;

TYNDALE (1534)

And streyghte waye Iesus spake vnto them sayinge: be of god cheare, it is I,

WEBSTER (1833)

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I;

BASIC ENGLISH (1949)

But straight away Jesus said to them, Take heart; it is I,

WYCLIFFITE: PURVEY (14TH CENTURY)

Sothely God seyde to Adam, "For thou herdist the voys of thi wijf, and hast ete of the tree,

of which Y comaundide to thee that thou schuldist not ete, the erthe schal be cursid in thi werk;

in traueylis thou schalt ete therof in alle daies of thi lijf;

KJV (1611)

And vnto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened vnto the voyce of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree,

of which I commaunded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eate of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake:

in sorow shalt thou eate of it all the dayes of thy life.

Subjunctive vs. indicative

WITHAM (1730)

And Peter an{+s}wering {+s}aid: Lord if it be thou, bid me come to thee upon the water.

WESLEY (1755)

And Peter an{+s}wering him {+s}aid, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come to thee on the water.

WEBSTER (1833)

And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it is thou, bid me come to thee on the water.

Subjunctive vs. indicative/phrasal verbs

WYCLIFFITE: PURVEY (14TH CENTURY)

in swoot of thi cheer thou schalt ete thi breed, til thou turne a{+g}en in to the erthe of which thou art takun;

for thou art dust, and thou schalt turne a{+g}en in to dust."

KJV (1611)

In the sweate of thy face shalt thou eate bread, till thou returne vnto the ground: for out of it wast thou taken,

for dust thou art, and vnto dust shalt thou returne.

PURVER (1764)

Nay eat Victuals in the Sweat of thy Brows, till thou returne{+s}t to the Ground, {+s}ince thou wa{+s}t taken out of it :

for thou ha{+s}t been Earth, and {+s}halt turn to Earth again.

BASIC ENGLISH (1949)

With the hard work of your hands you will get your bread till you go back to the earth from which you were taken:

for dust you are and to the dust you will go back.

Reflexive verbs: direct objects

WYCLIFFITE: PURVEY (14TH CENTURY)

And whanne thei herden the vois of the Lord God goynge in paradijs at the wynd after myddai,

Adam and his wijf hidden hem fro the face of the Lord God in the middis of the tre of paradijs.

KJV (1611)

And they heard the voyce of the Lord God, walking in the garden in the coole of the day:

and Adam and his wife hid themselues from the presence of the Lord God, amongst the trees of the garden.

NEW JERUSALEM (1985)

The man and his wife heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the cool of the day,

and they hid from Yahweh God among the trees of the garden.

Reflexive verbs: indirect objects

WYCLIFFITE: PURVEY (14TH CENTURY)

And the i{+g}en of bothe weren openid; and whanne thei knewen that thei weren nakid,

thei sewiden the leeues of a fige tre, and maden brechis to hem silf.

KJV (1611)

And the eyes of them both were opened, & they knew that they were naked,

and they sewed figge leaues together, and made themselues aprons.

PURVER (1764)

Then the Eyes of them both were opened, {+s}o that they knew them{+s}elves to be naked ;

and {+s}ewing Fig‑leaves together, they made them Girdles.

WEBSTER (1833)

And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they [were] naked :

and they sewed fig‑leaves together, and made for themselves aprons.

MODERN AMERICAN (1923)

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked;

so they sewed fig‑leaves together, and made themselves girdles.