| nominative case |
| Definition - The grammatical case that indicates the subject of the verb. Notes: 1. English normally expresses this with word order. In highly inflected languages, such as Latin, this is shown by modifying word endings. |
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Example - In the sentence Bob ate Dick, the word order tells us that Bob is the subject and Dick is the object. |
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Etymology - The word derives via Middle French from the Latin nominativus, pertaining to naming. |
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Oxford English Dictionary - Its first citation is from 1387: "Þat ylond of Ynde hatte Tilis in þe nomenatyf caas; and þe ilond of occean hatte Tyle in þe nominatyf caas." (Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 327 ) |
