The Comic English Grammar

Percival Leigh (1813 - 1889)

This is a basic grammar, treating of the parts of speech, syntax, versification, pronunciation and punctuation.

The listener is warned that there is quite a dated feel about this little grammar as the author, in keeping with the times (1840), is a frightful snob about social classes, scathing about 'vulgar speech' and also sometimes quite rude about American turns of phrase. The author is not remotely as comical as he thinks he is, but it has its moments. (Summary by Ruth Golding)

Genre(s): Language learning

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 00 Preliminary Discourse Ruth Golding
00:08:16
Play 01 Part I Orthography Ruth Golding
00:18:11
Play 02 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 1 Parts of Speech Ruth Golding
00:08:18
Play 03 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 2 Articles Ruth Golding
00:03:28
Play 04 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 3 Substantives Ruth Golding
00:13:09
Play 05 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 4 Adjectives Ruth Golding
00:06:13
Play 06 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 5 Pronouns Ruth Golding
00:13:18
Play 07 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 6 Verbs Ruth Golding
00:21:28
Play 08 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 7 Adverbs Ruth Golding
00:03:28
Play 09 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 8 and 9 Prepositions and Conjunctions Ruth Golding
00:03:48
Play 10 Pt. II Etymology Ch. 10 Derivation Ruth Golding
00:07:09
Play 11 Pt. III Syntax Rule I Ruth Golding
00:13:20
Play 12 Pt. III Syntax Rules II - XV Ruth Golding
00:18:07
Play 13 Pt. III Syntax Rules XVI to XXII Ruth Golding
00:14:47
Play 14 Pt. IV Prosody Ch. 1 Pronunciation Ruth Golding
00:28:53
Play 15 Pt. IV Prosody Ch. 2 Versification Ruth Golding
00:23:12
Play 16 Pt. IV Prosody Ch. 3 Punctuation Ruth Golding
00:03:41
Play 17 Address to Young Students Ruth Golding
00:09:52