Quote:

(did i get them out of order?) should it be nigh, near, next--could be.



Yup. nigh is from OE neah, near is from the comparative and next from the superlative. Regular and irregular are somewhat imprecise terms in English grammar. There is a rough correspondence between strong and irregular verbs and between weak and regular verbs in Old and Modern English but the verb teach, considered irregular in Modern English, is from a weak verb in Old English.