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majjhimāya
majjhima
fem instr sg of majjhima (adj); masc dat sg of majjhima (adj); fem dat sg of majjhima (adj); nt dat sg of majjhima (adj); …
- middle; middling; medium; medium-sized; moderate
- medium strength
- (vinaya) monk of five to ten years standing; lit. middle
- used; worn; lit. middle age
- (gram) 2nd (person) (you; you all); lit. middle
- Majjhima Nikāya; lit. middle
- medium height; medium size
- middle person; man in the middle; lit. middle
- …
Built from
- ma — root · middle
From PIE *medhyo-. The concrete sense is spatial centrality; compare Sanskrit madhya, Greek mésos, Latin medius, English mid. Used in Buddhist contexts for the middle way and the middle collection of suttas.
- jjhima — stem · middle (stem form)
The suffix -ima forms ordinal and qualitative adjectives; here it marks degree or comparison, reinforcing the sense 'middling' or 'of middle rank'.
Etymology. From an Indo-European root *medhyo- 'middle', related to Sanskrit madhya, Greek mésos, Latin medius, English mid. The word preserves the ancient sense of spatial centrality that extends metaphorically to 'moderate' and 'middling' in quality and degree.