Verbs are sometimes inflected to show whether the subject represents the speaker, the one spoken to, or the one spoken of. For this reason verbs are said to have three persons.

The First Person

A verb whose subject represents the speaker is said to be in the first person. I am happy, I praise.

The Second Person

A verb whose subject represents the one spoken to is said to be in the second person. You are happy, You praise.

The Third Person

A verb whose subject represents the one spoken of is said to be in the third person. Me is happy, Mary praises.

Exercise 249

Copy this table, filling the blanks in the sentences with the proper forms of the verb be. Notice carefully the requirements. The first verb, for example, is to be in the present tense, singular number, and first person.

Now underline the verbs in the table. They form a part of the conjugation of the verb be. Compare your table with the corresponding part of the conjugation on page 336.