Lesson 8.B 8.B.1 More Noun Declensions The pratipadika form of nouns may end in letters other than those considered thus far: the table on the next page includes the three declension previously covered and adds agni (fire, pum-linga ending in -i), guru (teacher, pum-linga ending in -u), and nadT (strT-linga ending in -T). These declensions need not be practised, but it would be useful to spend some time observing the differences between the declensions. The sandhi rule changing n to n following r or s follows through all declensions in trtlya eka-vacana and sasthT bahu-vacana. 8.B.2 Adjectives An adjective (visesana) qualifies a noun: it is dependent the noun as an attribute. This dependence manifests in the grammar, requiring the visesana to agree with the noun in gender, case and number. Thus using alpa (small), we could have: alpah narah alpam naram alpat narat vahanti The small men (pi.) carry the small man from the small man. In Monier- Williams' dictionary a visesana is listed in the form: alpa, mf(a)n. small sundara, mf(l)n. handsome, beautiful, attractive where 'mm.' stands form 'masculine-feminine-neuter', i.e. it may be declined in all three genders (as required by a visesana), and the '(a)' and '(l)' inserted after the 'f of 'mm.' indicates the strT-linga form in declension; thus alpa declines like bala, and sundarT like nadT, in the feminine. For example: alpa sundarT bala tisthati The small beautiful girl stands. As may be seen from the above examples, the visesana precedes the noun which it qualifies.
