Historical Grammar
NOTE.—The N.A. plural is usually the same as the N.A. singular. These umlaut datives are all due to the presence of a former i. Cf. Lat. dative singular patri, frātri, mātri, sorori (<*sosori), and Greek θνϓατρί.
The nd-Stems show umlaut both in then N.A. plural and in the dative singular:
NOTE.—Mn.E. friend and fiend are interesting analogical spellings. When s had been added by analogy to the O.E. plurals frīend and fīend, thus giving the double plurals friends and fiends, a second singular was formed by dropping the s. Thus friend and fiend displaced the old singulars frend and fend, both of which occur in the M.E. Ormulum, written about the year 1200.
| Sing. N.A. | sē frēond (friend) | sē fēond (enemy) |
|---|---|---|
| D. | friēnd | fīend |
| Plur. | ||
| N.A. | frīend | fīend |
Loquentes Practice Reference
Our drill practices frēond and fēond. Smith’s nd-Stem paragraph gives only the N.A. singular, the umlauted dative singular and the N.A. plural; the genitive and dative plural our drill uses follow the consonant-stem pattern Smith describes in §67.