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apanāmeti

pr 3rd sg of apanāmeti (verb)

1. diverts; sidetracks; lit. causes to bend away
2. withholds; keeps away; lit. causes to bend away
3. bends to the side; moves away; lit. causes to bend away
4. removes; banishes; lit. causes to bend away

Built from

• apa — prefix · away, off
  Spatial prefix indicating removal or deflection from a course. Cognates: Latin ab-, Greek apo-, English off.
• nām — root · bend, turn
  From √nam 'to bend, bow'. The causative -eti makes it 'causes to bend'. Related to Sanskrit namati and the noun nāma, though the verb keeps the concrete sense of bending or flexing.
• e — ending · 3rd singular present
  Present indicative active ending for 3rd person singular; marks the action as occurring in the present time.

Analysis. apa- (away, off) + nāmeti (causes to bend). The prefix apa- gives the root nām- its sense of deflection or removal: to cause something to bend away from its course.

Etymology. apa- is related to Latin ab- and Greek apo- (away); Sanskrit nāma- means 'name' but the verb nāmati/nāmeti derives from the root √nam 'to bend' (cognate with English 'name' in the sense of 'to nominate' or 'designate', and with Latin nōmen; also related to Sanskrit namati 'bends'). The concrete image is of bending something away or aside; prefixed with apa-, it gains the force of deflection, withholding, or removal.

Meanings from the Digital Pāḷi Dictionary; morphology and etymology by Claude.

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