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samannesati

pr 3rd sg of samannesati (verb)

1. investigates; inspects; scrutinizes; examines; lit. searches through

Built from

• sam — prefix · together, with
  Brings things into unified action; concrete imagery of bringing together. Works like Latin con- (English combine, Latin conservo).
• an — root · breathe, traverse, move through
  Cognate with Latin animus 'breath, mind' and Greek anem- 'wind' (English animate, animal). The sense of moving through or traversing leads to examining or investigating.
• ne — ending · causative
  Forms a causative stem, giving the sense 'causes to move through' or 'searches through'.
• sati — ending · 3rd sg. present
  3rd person singular present indicative; depicts the action as ongoing in present time.

Analysis. sam + annesati: 'searches together', examining thoroughly by systematic investigation.

Etymology. From sam- (together, with) + √an (to breathe, live; hence to move through, traverse). The root √an appears in anati 'breathes' and is cognate with Latin animus 'breath, mind', Greek anem- (wind), English animate. The prefix sam- intensifies the sense of thorough, unified action; samannesati literally depicts moving through or traversing something completely, hence investigating it fully.

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

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