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uttamo

uttama

masc nom sg of uttama (adj)

1. best; highest; ultimate; supreme; top
2. (gram) 1st (person); I; we; lit. last

Built from

• ut — prefix · up, out
  The spatial prefix meaning upward and outward movement. Cognates: English out, German aus. Here it marks direction toward the supreme or most elevated point.
• tama — ending · most, superlative
  Superlative suffix deriving from tan- (stretch); -tama makes the superlative degree. Transforms the root into "most stretched," hence "utmost" or "supreme."

Etymology. ut + tama: ut (out, up) + comparative/superlative suffix -tama, literally "most up" or "most out." Related to Sanskrit ut-, English "out." The suffix -tama forms superlatives (tama itself from the root tan- "stretch"), so uttama is "stretched to the highest degree" — the utmost reach.

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

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