Page:Sanskrit Grammar by Whitney p1.djvu/173

 stem, sometimes, in the older language: thus, nom. sing. (for ), accus. , du. (but also and ); — 3. The stem -, as final of a compound in the older language; but only in the nom. sing, masc., and not always: thus,, , , , , and : but also , , , etc.; — 4. For and, which substitute more extended stems, and for , see below, 394–6.

387. The vowel is lengthened in strong cases as follows:

1. Of the roots, , , , , in a few instances (V.), at the end of compounds; — 2. Of the roots and, but irregularly: see below, 403–5; — 3. Of water (see 393); also in its compound ; — 4. Of, foot: in the compounds of this word, in the later language, the same lengthening is made in the middle cases also; and in RV. and AV. the nom. sing. neut. is both - and -, while RV. has once -, and - and - occur in the Brāhmaṇas; — 5. Of nose (?  nom. du. fem., RV., once); — 6. Sporadic cases (V.) are: (?), voc. sing.; and -, accus. pl.;, nom. pl. The strengthened forms and  are constant, through all classes of cases.

388. Other modes of differentiation, by elision of or contraction of the syllable containing it, appear in a few stems:

1. In -: see below, 402; — 2. In (V.), along with prolongation of : thus,  du.,  pl.;  instr. sing., loc. sing., abl. sing.; — 3. In, contracted (V.) to in weak cases (but with some confusion of the two classes); — 4. In, which becomes, in RV., in weak cases; later it is indeclinable.

389. The endings are as stated above (380).

a. Respecting their combination with the final of the stem, as well as the treatment of the latter when it occurs at the end of the word, the rules of euphonic combination (chap. III.) are to be consulted; they require much more constant and various application here than anywhere else in declension.

b. Attention may be called to a few exceptional cases of combination (V.): and  from  month; the wholly anomalous  (RV. and VS.: AV. has always ) from ; and  and  corresponding to a nom. pl. (instead of : 222). is apparently for, by 143 a.

c. According to the grammarians, neuter stems, unless they end in a nasal or a semivowel, take in nom.-acc.-voc. pl. a strengthening nasal before the final consonant. But no such cases from neuter noun-stems appear ever to have been met with in use; and as regards adjective stems ending in a root, see above, 379 b.