snḥ

snḥ

Egyptian

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /sɛnɛħ/
  • Conventional anglicization: seneh

Verb

 3-lit.

1. (transitive) to tie up, to bind (people, animals, or body parts) [since the Old Kingdom]
2. (transitive) to magically render (poison) harmless
3. (transitive, of a snake) to constrict, to coil around (someone or something)

Inflection

Conjugation of snḥ (triliteral / 3-lit. / 3rad.) — base stem: snḥ, geminated stem: snḥḥ

infinitival forms			imperative
infinitive	negatival complement	complementary infinitive1	singular	plural
snḥ	snḥw, snḥ	snḥt	snḥ	snḥ

‘pseudoverbal’ forms
stative stem	periphrastic imperfective2		periphrastic prospective2
snḥ	ḥr snḥ	m snḥ	r snḥ

suffix conjugation
aspect / mood	active	passive	contingent
			aspect / mood	active	passive
perfect	snḥ.n	snḥw, snḥ	consecutive	snḥ.jn	active + .tj1, .tw2
		active + .tj1, .tw2
terminative	snḥt
perfective3	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2	obligative	snḥ.ḫr	active + .tj1, .tw2
imperfective	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2
prospective3	snḥ	snḥḥ	potentialis	snḥ.kꜣ	active + .tj1, .tw2
		active + .tj1, .tw2
subjunctive	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2

verbal adjectives
aspect / mood	relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms		participles
	active	passive	active	passive
perfect	snḥ.n	active + .tj1, .tw2	—	—
perfective	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2	snḥ	snḥ, snḥw5, snḥy5
imperfective	snḥ, snḥy, snḥw5	active + .tj1, .tw2	snḥ, snḥj6, snḥy6	snḥ, snḥw5
prospective	snḥ, snḥtj7	—	snḥtj4, snḥt4
Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. Archaic or greatly restricted in usage by Middle Egyptian. The perfect has mostly taken over the functions of the perfective, and the subjunctive and periphrastic prospective have mostly replaced the prospective. Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, plural .sn. Only in the masculine singular. Only in the masculine. Only in the feminine.

Faulkner instead considers the verb a causative, although the underived form is unattested:

Conjugation of snḥ (causative biliteral / caus. 2-lit. / caus. 2rad.) — base stem: snḥ

infinitival forms			imperative
infinitive	negatival complement	complementary infinitive1	singular	plural
snḥt, snḥ	snḥw, snḥ	snḥt	snḥ	snḥ

‘pseudoverbal’ forms
stative stem	periphrastic imperfective2		periphrastic prospective2
snḥ	ḥr snḥ	m snḥ	r snḥ

suffix conjugation
aspect / mood	active	passive	contingent
			aspect / mood	active	passive
perfect	snḥ.n	snḥw, snḥ	consecutive	snḥ.jn	active + .tj1, .tw2
		active + .tj1, .tw2
terminative	snḥt
perfective3	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2	obligative	snḥ.ḫr	active + .tj1, .tw2
imperfective	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2
prospective3	snḥw, snḥ, snḥy	snḥw, snḥ, snḥy	potentialis	snḥ.kꜣ	active + .tj1, .tw2
		active + .tj1, .tw2
subjunctive	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2

verbal adjectives
aspect / mood	relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms		participles
	active	passive	active	passive
perfect	snḥ.n	active + .tj1, .tw2	—	—
perfective	snḥ	active + .tj1, .tw2	snḥ	snḥ, snḥw5, snḥy5
imperfective	snḥ, snḥy, snḥw5	active + .tj1, .tw2	snḥ, snḥj6, snḥy6	snḥ, snḥw5
prospective	snḥ, snḥtj7	—	snḥwtj1 4, snḥtj4, snḥt4
Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. Archaic or greatly restricted in usage by Middle Egyptian. The perfect has mostly taken over the functions of the perfective, and the subjunctive and periphrastic prospective have mostly replaced the prospective. Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, plural .sn. Only in the masculine singular. Only in the masculine. Only in the feminine.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of snḥ  

snḥ

[New Kingdom]

Descendants

• (Akhmimic, Bohairic, Sahidic) Coptic: ⲥⲱⲛϩ (sōnh)

References

• Erman, Adolf; Grapow, Hermann (1930) Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache, volume 4, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, →ISBN, page 168.12–168.24
• Faulkner, Raymond (1962) A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian, Oxford: Griffith Institute, →ISBN, page 233