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mahāsaddā

mahāsadda

masc nom pl of mahāsadda (noun); masc instr sg of mahāsadda (noun); masc abl sg of mahāsadda (noun); masc voc sg of mahāsadda (noun); …

1. great noise; big racket
2. with a great noise; making a big racket

Built from

• mahā — root · great, large
  Adjective stem expressing magnitude; cognate with English 'much', Greek μέγα (mega-), Latin magnus. Used attributively in compounds.
• sadda — root · sound, noise
  Noun denoting an audible vibration or sound; from Sanskrit śabda-. Often doctrinal in compound expressions denoting sensory phenomena (the ear-door, sound as one of the five aggregates).

Analysis. mahā (great, large) + sadda (sound, noise); a compound noun denoting a loud or great sound, often used adverbially to mean 'with a great noise' or 'making a big racket'.

Etymology. mahā from Sanskrit mahant- 'great' (cognate with English 'much', Greek mega- 'great', Latin magnus 'large'); sadda from Sanskrit śabda- 'sound, noise' (cognate with English 'shab-' in shabbiness, originally a scratching or rough sound).

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

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