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paṭijānāti

pr 3rd sg of paṭijānāti (verb)

1. agrees; assents; confirms; lit. knows back
2. promises; lit. knows back
3. makes the claim (of); claims (to be); supposes ones is; lit. knows back
4. (logic) makes a logical proposition; lit. knows back
5. possesses self-awareness; knows one's own existence; lit. knows back
6. acknowledges; admits; confesses; lit. knows back

Built from

• paṭi — prefix · back; in return
  The spatial sense of counter-motion or reciprocity: 'knowing back' becomes recognition, agreement, and the act of returning an acknowledgment.
• jānā — stem · know
  Present stem of √jñā (to know; Sanskrit jānāti, English know, German kennen). Cognate with Greek gignōskō and Latin nōscere.
• -ti — ending · 3rd singular present
  Personal ending marking third person singular present indicative; shows the action as ongoing or habitual in present time.

Analysis. paṭi- (back, in return) + jānāti (knows). The 'knowing back' or 'knowing in return' sense becomes agreement, acknowledgment, and the reciprocal act of promising or confirming.

Etymology. From paṭi + jānāti. The prefix paṭi (back, against, counter) combines with √jñā (know; cognate with Greek gignōskō, English know, German kennen), creating the sense of 'knowing back'—recognition and assent. The concrete spatial imagery of 'back' (responding, returning) and 'in opposition' infuses the abstract meanings of agreement and acknowledgment.

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

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