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ākaṅkheyya
ākaṅkhati
opt 3rd sg of ākaṅkhati (verb); masc voc sg of ākaṅkheyya (ptp); nt voc sg of ākaṅkheyya (ptp)
- ākaṅkhati (pr): wishes; wants; desires; aspires (for)
- ākaṅkheyya (ptp): desirable; should be sought after; lit. to be wished for
Built from
- ā — prefix · toward
Reverses motion; here gives the sense of "stretching toward oneself" or "toward the speaker", lending the verb its sense of longing or desire directed inward.
- kaṅkh — root · long for; wish
Appears to carry concrete imagery of stretching or reaching toward; the abstract meaning "desire" emerges from this physical sense of striving toward something.
- e — ending · optative
Marks the optative mood, expressing wish or desire (fitting for a verb of wishing); 3rd person singular.
- yya — ending · participle
Forms a gerundive or passive participle (ākaṅkheyya, to be wished for, desirable); this is a separate inflection from the optative.
Etymology. From ā- (toward, reversal of direction) + √kaṅkh-, which appears to be Proto-Indic *kañch- "to long for, stretch toward"; the concrete sense of "stretching oneself toward something" evolves into "wishing" or "desiring." Cognates are uncertain; the root may be related to Latin quinque, quaerō (seeking), but the connection is not established with confidence.