Declension of different forms of pronoun ‘ta’
Masculine : so
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Paṭhamā | so, syo | te, ne |
| Dutiyā | taṃ, naṃ | te, ne |
| Tatiyā | tena, nena | tehi, tebhi, nehi, nebhi |
| Catutthī | tassa, nassa, assa | tesaṃ, nesaṃ, tesānaṃ, nesānaṃ |
| Pañcamī | tasmā, tamhā, namhā, amhā | tehi, tebhi, nehi, nebhi |
| Chaṭṭhī | tassa, nassa, assa | tesaṃ, nesaṃ, tesānaṃ, nesānaṃ |
| Sattamī | tasmiṃ, nasmiṃ, asmiṃ, tamhi, namhi, amhi | tesu, nesu |
Neuter : taṃ
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Paṭhamā | taṃ, naṃ | te, ne, tāni, nāni |
| Dutiyā | taṃ, naṃ | te, ne, tāni, nāni |
| The declension of neuter pronoun ‘ta’ is similar to that of masculine pronoun ‘ta’ for Instrumental to Locative cases. | ||
Feminine : sā
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Paṭhamā | sā, syā | tā, nā, tāyo, nāyo |
| Dutiyā | taṃ, naṃ | tā, nā, tāyo, nāyo |
| Tatiyā | tāya, nāya, tassā, tissā | tāhi, tābhi, nāhi, nābhi |
| Catutthī | tāya, tassā, tissā, tissāya, tassāya, assāya | tāsaṃ, tāsānaṃ, āsaṃ |
| Pañcamī | tāya, nāya, tassā | tāhi, tābhi, nāhi, nābhi |
| Chaṭṭhī | tāya, tassā, tissā, tissāya, tassāya, assāya | tāsaṃ, tāsānaṃ, āsaṃ |
| Sattamī | tassaṃ, assaṃ, tissaṃ, tāyaṃ, tassā, tissā | tāsu |
The usage of cases is the same across all the nouns, pronouns etc.
Thus,
him / to him = taṃ (masc. acc. s)
for them (masc.) = tesaṃ / tesānaṃ (dat. p)
with her = tāya saddhiṃ (fem. inst. s)
from them (fem.) = tāhi / tābhi (abl. p)
her son = tassā / tāya putto (fem. gen. s)
his friend = tassa mitto (masc. gen. s)
Let us translate a few English sentences into Pali to understand the usage of various declined forms of these pronouns.
1. The king addressed his ministers.
Bhūpālo tassa amacce āmantesi.
(his = tassa – masc. gen. s)
2. The boys call their friend. They wish to play with him.
Kumārā tesaṃ mittaṃ pakkosanti. Te tena saddhiṃ kiḷītuṃ icchanti.
(their = tesaṃ – masc. gen. p,
they = te – masc. nom. p,
with him = tena saddhiṃ – masc. inst. s)
3. The lay devotee approached the monk. He saluted him and asked for teaching from him.
Upāsako bhikkhuṃ upasaṅkami. So taṃ vandi, tasmā dhammaṃ ayāci.
(he = so – masc. nom. s,
him = taṃ – masc. acc. s,
from him = tasmā – masc. abl. s)
4. Mother will cook food for her children.
Mātā tassā dārakānaṃ bhattaṃ pacissati.
(her = tassā – fem. gen. s)
5. Women went to the park along with their daughters to collect flowers.
Vanitāyo tāsaṃ kaññāhi saddhiṃ pupphāni saṃharituṃ uyyānaṃ agamiṃsu.
(their = tāsaṃ – fem. gen. p)