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evamāha

sandhi form: evaṃ + āha (3rd sg. perfect of āha 'said')

1. one said thus

Built from

• evaṃ — root · thus, so
  Demonstrative adverb meaning 'in this way' or 'thus'. Often used as a quotative particle to mark direct speech.
• āha — root · said
  3rd sg. perfect of √ah 'to say', cognate with Greek éphē. The ā- prefix reverses the aspect, marking completed action.

Analysis. evaṃ (thus, in this way) + āha (said, perfect of √ah 'say'). A common Pali phrase introducing or closing reported speech, often appearing in sutta dialogue frames.

Etymology. āha is the 3rd sg. perfect of āh-, an Indo-European root cognate with Greek ἔφη (éphē) 'he said' and English 'say'. The particle evaṃ (thus) is an old demonstrative adverb, related to Sanskrit evam, from PIE *e-we 'that (one)'.

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

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