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tanuttā

tanutta

nt nom pl of tanutta (noun); nt instr sg of tanutta (noun); nt abl sg of tanutta (noun); nt voc sg of tanutta (noun); …

1. reduction; diminution; decrease (of); lit. thinness; thin state
2. small amount; paucity; lit. thinness; thin state

Built from

• tan — root · stretch, thin
  From IE *ten- 'to stretch, extend'. Related to English 'thin', 'tend', 'tenuous'; Latin 'tenuis', 'tendere'. The concrete image is extension and attenuation.
• u — stem · stem former
  Thematic vowel linking root to suffix.
• tta — ending · state, quality (masculine or neuter noun suffix -tta)
  Marks an abstract state or condition. Derives nominals from roots and verbs; here combined with -ā for the feminine form tanuttā or appearing as neuter tanutta.

Etymology. From √tan 'to stretch, extend', hence literally 'state of being stretched thin'; cognate with English 'thin' and Latin 'tenuis' (thin, slender), both from the same Indo-European root *ten- 'to stretch'. The suffix -utta marks a state or quality derived from a verbal root.

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

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