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tamhāpi

ta

pronoun (ablative + enclitic conjunctive)

1. ta (pron): that
2. ta (letter): (gram) letter t; 24th letter of the alphabet; dental sibilant
3. tamhā (pron): from that
4. tamhi (pron): in it; in that
5. tamhi (pron): (gram) before that

Built from

• tamhā — stem · from that
  Ablative singular of ta (demonstrative 'that'). Marks source, cause, or separation — answers 'from whom/what?' The -hā ending replaces older -smā.
• api — prefix · also, even
  Enclitic particle adding emphasis or concession, 'even', 'also'. When suffixed to an ablative, it softens or widens the sense: 'even from that', 'also from that'.

Analysis. tamhā (ablative singular of ta 'that') + api (enclitic 'also, even'), sandhi-contracted: tamhā + api > tamhāpi. The ablative marks source or separation; api adds emphasis or the sense of concession.

Etymology. ta is Indo-European: Sanskrit tat, Latin is-te, English that, German das all descend from PIE *to- 'that'. The ablative ending -smā is the Indo-European source-marker, here levelled to -hā by Pali's sound changes. api is an enclitic particle, likely related to Sanskrit api and possibly akin to Greek epi- (toward, upon) in its emphasizing function.

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

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