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tathārūpā

tathārūpa

masc nom pl of tathārūpa (adj); nt nom pl of tathārūpa (adj); nt acc pl of tathārūpa (adj); masc abl sg of tathārūpa (adj); …

1. such; such kind; of such quality; so formed; lit. form like this
2. suitable; appropriate; fitting; lit. form like this

Built from

• tathā — root · thus, in that manner
  From tad 'that' + adverbial -thā; points to a standard or model already understood. No direct European cognate, but the sense of deixis parallels English 'that-wise'.
• rūpa — root · form, appearance, shape
  From √rūp 'to form, to shape'; cognate with Latin rūpēs (cliff, rough stone) and English 'rough'. The root carries the concrete image of visible shape and beauty (rūpa is a cardinal feature of phenomenal form in the five khandhas).

Analysis. tathā (thus, in such manner) + rūpa (form, appearance); literally 'form like this' — descriptive compound expressing similarity or correspondence to a stated or understood standard.

Etymology. tathā from tad (that, the mentioned one) + -thā (adverbial suffix); rūpa from √rūp (to form, cognate with Latin rūpēs 'cliff', English 'rough', Greek ṛu- 'to scratch'); the compound conveys the concrete image of a shape or appearance matching a prototype, extended to mean 'of such a kind' in quality or character.

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

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