‹ Back to the text
viññāya
viññāyati
imp 2nd sg of viññāyati (verb); reflx aor 1st sg of viññāyi (verb)
- viññāya (ger): knowing; understanding; being conscious (of)
- viññāyati (pr): is known; is understood
- viññāyi (aor): knew
Built from
- vi — prefix · apart, clearly
The prefix vi- means seeing distinctly or knowing through and through; it conveys penetrating awareness. No direct European cognate, but the spatial sense (apart, asunder) becomes the intensifying meaning (clear insight).
- ñā — root · know, understand
The root √ñā (to know) is cognate with Latin gnōscere, Greek gignṓskein, and English know; all descend from the Indo-European root *gn(e)h₃-. This is one of the oldest and most widespread cognate sets in European languages.
- ya — ending · gerundive marker
The suffix -ya forms the gerundive (absolutive), marking a completed action preceding the main verb. In this form, viññāya means 'knowing' or 'having known'.
Etymology. vi- (apart, seeing distinctly) + √ñā (to know), with -ya- formant. The prefix vi- gives the sense of clear, penetrating knowledge. √ñā is cognate with Latin gnōscere (know), Greek gignṓskein (recognize), English know, Sanskrit jñā. The gerundive -ya marks the action as completed before the main verb.