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vivattayi

aor 3rd sg of vivattayi (verb); aor 2nd sg of vivattayi (verb)

1. untied; unravelled; (comm) torn out; lit. went apart

Built from

• vi — prefix · apart, asunder
  Intensive and directional: things separating in different directions, unravelling clarity. Related to dvi 'two', works like Latin dis-.
• vatt — root · turn, roll, revolve
  Cognate with Latin vertere 'to turn' and English wort. The concrete image is rotation or winding.
• ayi — ending · 3rd singular aorist
  Marks completed action in past time, 3rd person singular. The -ayi ending is characteristic of root aorists in Pali.

Analysis. vi- (apart, asunder) + vattati (to turn, revolve); literally 'turned apart' or 'revolving asunder', whence 'came undone'.

Etymology. √vatt- (to turn, roll) is cognate with Latin vertere (to turn) and English wort (a plant that turns/grows). The prefix vi- (apart, in different directions) intensifies and reverses the sense: from 'turning together' to 'turning apart', hence unravelling or unwinding. Pali vivatta- appears in the Abhidhamma as a technical term for dissolution or unrolling of formations.

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

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