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kathaṅkathī

masc nom sg of kathaṅkathī (adj); masc nom pl of kathaṅkathī (adj); fem nom sg of kathaṅkathī (adj); nt nom pl of kathaṅkathī (adj); …

1. confused; not sure; in doubt; lit. asking how?

Built from

• katha — root · how, which
  Interrogative pronoun from *kwod-tis; cognate with English 'what', Latin 'quod'. The concrete sense of 'which' (direction, path) underlies the abstract meaning of perplexity.
• aṅka — stem · limb, member
  Here functioning as a formative element in a frozen compound to express a state or condition. The imagery is 'being of two minds' (like limbs pointing in different directions).
• thī — ending · feminine abstract
  Feminine nominalization suffix (-thī/-tā) that converts the compound into an abstract noun denoting the condition or quality of wavering.

Analysis. katha + aṅka + thī, literally 'asking-how + limb + feminine marker': a feminine abstract noun expressing the state of asking 'how?' or 'which way?', denoting perplexity and wavering between alternatives.

Etymology. From katha (interrogative 'how, which') + aṅka (limb, member, or here a formative element meaning 'state, condition'). The root katha derives from Indo-European *kwod-tis (interrogative base), cognate with English 'what' and Latin 'quod'. The -thī ending is a feminine abstract nominalization (like sukhatā 'happiness'). The compound sense evolved from the concrete imagery of 'asking which limb' or 'going both ways' to abstract hesitation and doubt.

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

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