deriv LSK ETT STT aSTA ALPH OLDHOMEPAGE NEWHOMEPAGE

/nau- / नौॱ

The base **nau- नौॱ f "ship" is the only commonly used nounbase that ends in au औ.

Before vowel endings, it gets ecoyavAyAvaH —

/nau- + /Ge → nAv नाव् + e ए by ecoyavAyAvaH → !**nAve नावे

/nau- + /am → !**nAvam नावम्

/nau- + /au → !**nAvau नावौ

/nau- + /jas OR /zas OR /Gas OR /Gasi → !**nAvaH नावः

/nau- + /Am → !**nAvAm नावाम्

/nau- + /TA → !**nAvA नावा

The other noun endings are added directly —

/nau- + /su → !**naus नौस् JBJ

/nau- + /bhis → !**naubhis नौभिस्

/nau- + /bhyAm → !**naubhyAm नौभ्याम्

/nau- + /sup' → **nauSu नौषु, with /Satvam

(As a curiosity: /nau- appears to be the only base that gets all the endings in list svaujasamauTch... with no replacement.)

Even the /sambuddhi stays, because no rule deletes it:

/nau- + /sambuddhi → !**naus' नौस्ऽ JBJ

he gagana-nauH हे गगनॱनौः "hey sentient spaceship!"

This /nau- is the only common nounbase after which none of the noun endings is replaced by any rule.

But of course there will be changes when it becomes a neuter ifc —

bahunu taTam बहुनु तटम् "coast having many ships", with svamornapuMs... and hrasvonapuMs... and eca::igghrasv...