ātrs

Latvian

Etymology

From Proto-Baltic *ātro-, *ātra-, from Proto-Indo-European *ētro- (“quick, fast”). Another possible etymological source is Proto-Indo-European *āter-, *ātr- (“fire”) (cf. Avestan ātar- (“fire”), Sanskrit अथर्वन् (átharvan, “fire priest”)), in which case the semantic evolution would be “hot” > “fiery, passionate” > “fast, quick.” It is also possible that *ētro- and *āter- have the same origin, or are ultimately the same stem. Cognates include dialectal Lithuanian otrùs (“sensitive, delicate; passionate, dilligent, laborious”), Old High German ātar (“sharp; subtle; quick, fast”) (< *ētró-); some researchers include also the old Thracian river name Athrys (now Jantra, in Bulgaria).^[1]

Pronunciation

IPA: [āːtɾs]

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Adjective

ātrs (def. ātrais, comp. ātrāks, sup. visātrākais; adv. ātri)

fast, quick, rapid (capable of moving long distances in a short time; in rapid tempo)
ātra mašīna — fast car

visātrakais skrējējs — the fastest runner

ātra runa — fast talk

ātra izaugsme — rapid growth

pulkstenis ir ātrāks — the clock is fast (= shows the wrong time, later than it really is)
fast, quick (which takes place or is made in a short time)
ātra uzvara — quick victory

ātra nāve — quick death

ātrs lēmums — quick decision

ātrā (medicīniskā) palīdzība — first aid (lit. quick medical help)
(of people) quick to become angry, short-tempered, temperamental
ātras dabas cilvkēs — short-tempered person (lit. a person with a quick nature)
(of looks, smiles) quick (lasting a short time)
tad viņš uzmeta ātru skatu Ilzei — then he threw a quick glance at Ilze

Declension

indefinite declension (nenoteiktā galotne) of ātrs

	masculine (vīriešu dzimte)		feminine (sieviešu dzimte)
	singular (vienskaitlis)	plural (daudzskaitlis)	singular (vienskaitlis)	plural (daudzskaitlis)
nominative (nominatīvs)	ātrs	ātri	ātra	ātras
accusative (akuzatīvs)	ātru	ātrus	ātru	ātras
genitive (ģenitīvs)	ātra	ātru	ātras	ātru
dative (datīvs)	ātram	ātriem	ātrai	ātrām
instrumental (instrumentālis)	ātru	ātriem	ātru	ātrām
locative (lokatīvs)	ātrā	ātros	ātrā	ātrās
vocative (vokatīvs)	—	—	—	—