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vacanapathā

vacanapatha

masc nom pl of vacanapatha (noun); masc instr sg of vacanapatha (noun); masc abl sg of vacanapatha (noun); masc voc sg of vacanapatha (noun); …

1. way of saying things; mode of expression; manner of speech

Built from

• vacana — stem · speech, utterance
  Nominalized form of the root √vac (to speak), seen in vāc (voice in Vedic). Related to Latin vox, English voice, Greek ὀψ (ops, voice in Homer).
• patha — stem · path, way, road
  From √path (to walk, travel). The word is cognate with English path, German Pfad, and Sanskrit panthā. Here used figuratively for manner or mode—the concrete path becomes an abstract track or way of proceeding.

Analysis. vacanapatha = vacana (speech, utterance) + patha (path, way); literally "speech-path", the track or manner along which utterance travels.

Etymology. vacana from √vac (speak; cognate with Latin vox, English voice, Greek ops); patha from √path (to walk, go; cognate with English path, German Pfad, Sanskrit panthā). The compound uses the concrete imagery of a path to express the abstract notion of manner or mode.

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

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