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santataraṁ

santati

accusative singular neuter, or adverb (from santati + comparative suffix -tara + accusative/adverbial ending)

1. continuity
2. continuance
3. succession
4. stream

Built from

• sam — prefix · together
  Things brought into one; here creating the sense of things extended in succession.
• tan — root · stretch, extend
  Cognate with Latin tenere, English tense. Spatial imagery of stretching or drawing out.
• ti — ending · abstract noun former
  Derives an abstract noun from the root.
• tara — ending · comparative, intensive
  Marks comparative degree or intensifies the notion.
• ṁ — ending · accusative/adverbial
  Accusative singular neuter, or marks adverbial use.

Analysis. santati (continuity) + -tara (comparative/intensive) + -ṁ (accusative/adverbial ending): "more continuously" or "with greater continuity"; used adverbially to mean "successively, in succession, continuously."

Etymology. From sam- (together) + √tan (to stretch, extend), literally "stretching together"; cognate with Latin tenere (to hold), English tense, tone. The prefix sam- shows things brought into one; the root √tan (to extend) gives the sense of a stretched-out line or continuum, hence "continuity."

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

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