Vocabulary and Word Forms (शब्दार्थ): Synonyms, Antonyms, Derivation
शब्दार्थ items test three separate skills: synonyms (पर्यायपद), antonyms (विपर्ययपद), and derivation - how a word is built from a root, a prefix (उपसर्ग) or a suffix (प्रत्यय).
Synonyms and antonyms
Learn pairs as they occur in the prescribed lessons: वनम्–अरण्यम्, जलम्–उदकम्, पुत्रः–सुतः, सूर्यः–रविः; opposites सुखम्–दुःखम्, उच्चैः–नीचैः, हर्षः–शोकः, आदि–अन्तः.
Derivation
- उपसर्ग changes meaning: हृ → आहरति (brings), प्रहरति (strikes), संहरति (gathers/destroys).
- कृत् प्रत्यय: -अक for the doer (कारकः), -त/-क्त for the done (कृतम्), -अनीय/-तव्य for the obligatory (करणीयम्, कर्तव्यम्), -त्व/-ता for abstract nouns (मनुष्यत्वम्, सुन्दरता).
- तद्धित: -मय "made of" (जलमयम्), मतुप् "possessing" (धनवान्, बुद्धिमान्), -अ for descent (पाण्डवः).
Worked example
ज्ञानम् = ज्ञा (to know) + ल्युट् (-अन), neuter, "knowledge". Compare ज्ञातम् (क्त, "known") and ज्ञातव्यम् (कर्मणि, "to be known"). The suffix decides the form and the sense, not the root alone.
Traps
- Choosing a synonym correct in isolation but wrong in the sentence.
- Wrong feminine formation of adjectives: सुन्दरः / सुन्दरी / सुन्दरम्.
- Treating an उपसर्ग as a separate word.
- Offering an unrelated word as an antonym, e.g. सुखम् → क्रोधः.
- Confusing look-alike words such as कृपा (compassion) and क्रोधः (anger).