apa ghāta

 

In Sanskrit, apaghāta primarily means “striking off, cutting off, 

or warding off,” and by extension can also mean “killing” or “a violent,

fatal accident.”

Core Sanskrit meaning

The Sanskrit dictionaries in the results define apaghāta (अपघात) as:

• Striking or cutting off

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• Warding off, averting, driving away

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• Killing

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• A violent or fatal accident; violent death

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• 

  1 Source

These senses reflect the underlying verbal root √ghāt / √han, “to strike,

kill,” combined with the prefix apa-, “away, off.”

Examples from Sanskrit literature

The entry cites usage such as in the Mahābhārata, where apaghāta

appears in the sense of “striking, harm, or injury”

Wisdom Library

.

Etymology

The dictionary explicitly notes:

• Etymology: apa (“away, off”) + ghāta (“striking, killing”) → “striking off,”
• “warding off,” or “killing”

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• 

  1 Source

Range of meanings across Indian languages

Although the user asked specifically about Sanskrit, the results show 

how the meaning extends in related languages:

• Marathi: “evil accident,” “violent death”

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• Nepali: “suicide; killing; violent death”

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• Kannada: “accident; impact of an accident”

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• 

  1 Source
• 
  

These reflect later semantic developments from the Sanskrit sense 

of “striking” or “fatal blow.”

Summary

In Sanskrit, apaghāta has a semantic range centered on forceful impact:

• Primary: striking, cutting off, warding off
• Secondary: killing, violent death, fatal accident

All later meanings in regional languages derive from this core Sanskrit sense.