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pubbeva

pubba

indeclinable (adverb) formed from adjective + emphasis particle

1. pubba (adj): previous; earlier; former
2. pubba (adj): going before; been before
3. pubba (adj): eastern
4. pubba (adj): (gram) initial; preceding; first
5. pubba (masc): (gram) initial vowel; preceding letter; first syllable
6. pubba (masc): pus; suppuration
7. pubbā (fem): east
8. pubbe (ind): before; previously; formerly; in the past
9. …

Built from

• pubbe — stem · before, previously
  Locative singular of the adjective pubba (previous, former). The adverbial locative sense "in time before" derives from spatial "in front".
• eva — ending · indeed, just, even
  Emphatic particle (enclitic) that intensifies or clarifies the preceding word, strengthening the sense of temporal priority.

Analysis. pubbe (locative singular of pubba "before, previous") + eva (emphasis particle "just, indeed, even") — "even before, right from before"; a strengthened form of the temporal adverb pubbe.

Etymology. pubba derives from Proto-Indo-European *per- "forward, through" (the sense "before" emerges as "what comes forward first in time"); cognate with English "fore", German "vor", and Latin "prae". The particle eva is an emphatic enclitic with no close European cognate but cognate with Sanskrit eva.

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

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