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bahukāro

bahukāra

masc nom sg of bahukāra (adj)

1. very useful; extremely helpful; of great service (for or in); lit. doing much

Built from

• bahu — root · much, many
  Ancient IE adjective; cognate with Sanskrit bahu, English bough (originally many branches, abundance). The sense of abundance underlies usefulness.
• kāra — stem · doing, action
  From √kṛ to make or do; cognate with Sanskrit kāra, Latin creare, English craft. Represents the action of making or performing service.

Analysis. bahukāra = bahu (much, many) + kāra (doing, making, action). Literally "doing much"; used of service or help that is abundant and beneficial.

Etymology. bahu is an ancient Indo-European adjective cognate with Sanskrit bahu, English "bough" (originally "branch, abundance"), and Latin fulcrum (from the same root meaning "abundance, support"). kāra derives from √kṛ (to do, make), cognate with Sanskrit kāra, Latin creare, English craft, German kraft. The compound is a natural formation: bahukāra shifts from the literal "much-doing" to the abstract sense of usefulness through the concrete idea of abundant service.

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

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