patlaban

Latvian

Etymology

An old compound, from pat +‎ laban, where pat is one of the parallel forms of pats (“self”), here apparently with the meaning “exact(ly),” “direct(ly),” “outright,” “immediate(ly),” and laban is perhaps an old accusative form of labs (“good”). The meaning would have evolved from an accusative of time, “at the exact good (moment),” to “right now.”[1]

Pronunciation

Adverb

patlaban

  1. now, currently (at the current moment)
    patlaban līst ― it is raining now
    viņš ir patlaban aizņemts ― he is busy now
    'maiznieks patlaban kāpa augšā no cepļa pagraba ― the butcher has come up from the oven basemenet right now
    'augstienē mākoņu ozols, tā pavēnī es, / divi vien mēs patlaban uz pasaules ― in the upland an oak of clouds, in its shade I (am) / only the two of us (exist) now on the world

Synonyms

References
  1. Karulis, Konstantīns (1992), “pats”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN
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