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assutavato

assutavant

masc dat sg of assutavant (adj); nt dat sg of assutavant (adj); masc gen sg of assutavant (adj); nt gen sg of assutavant (adj)

1. unlearned; untaught; uninitiated; untrained; lit. having not heard quality

Built from

• a — prefix · not, without
  Plain negation; cognate with English un- and Greek a(n)-. Negates the entire quality of having heard.
• suta — stem · heard, learned
  Past participle of √śru 'hear'; cognate with English hear, Latin audīre. In Buddhist context, suta refers to learning through hearing the Buddha's words.
• vant — ending · having, endowed with
  Possessive suffix (Sanskrit -vant, -vati in feminine). Here it marks one who possesses or is characterized by the quality preceding it; in dative/genitive form, the word functions as an adjective describing lack of learning.

Analysis. a + suta + vant: (a-) not + (suta) heard, learned + (-vant) having the quality of; literally 'one who has not heard', i.e. untrained in the Buddha's teachings.

Etymology. From a- (not) + √śru (Sanskrit śṛṇoti 'hears'; cognate with English hear, Latin audīre, Greek akoúein) in the past participle form suta 'heard'. The suffix -vant (Sanskrit -vant) means 'having' or 'endowed with'. Together the compound denies the quality of learning through hearing, central to oral transmission of Dhamma.

Meanings from the Digital Pāḷi Dictionary; morphology and etymology by Claude.

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