WBCHSE HS Sanskrit key terms

Sanskrit prose composition, as opposed to verse; in this syllabus it names the prescribed prose passages whose story, characters and sentences candidates must read closely and explain.

The plain meaning or purport of a passage rendered into simple language; exam answers give it after a brief context sentence, without adding events not found in the text.

A written explanation of a prescribed passage, typically combining word glosses, grammatical notes and a connected paraphrase, arranged so each difficult form in the original is accounted for.

Splitting a sandhi-joined text back into its separate words; usually the first step in explaining a verse or prose sentence before grammar and meaning are discussed.

The re-ordering of words into natural syntactic sequence, placing the finite verb last and attaching cases to their heads, so that a verse becomes intelligible before translation.

Sanskrit verse composition measured in metres; the prescribed poems must be studied for literal meaning, imagery, sentiment and the figures of speech the poet employs.

The aesthetic flavour relished by an audience when a dominant emotion is developed through characters and situation; classical theory recognises nine, such as compassion and heroism.

A poetic ornament, a device of sound or sense that heightens expression; candidates identify it by name and justify the identification from the words of the verse itself.

Simile: two unlike things are compared openly with a word such as इव or वत्, and the point of similarity is stated, unlike metaphor where the comparison is implied.

Metaphor: the subject is identified with the object of comparison without any word of likeness, so that one thing is spoken of as if it were the other.

Poetic fancy in which the poet supposes something to be another thing, usually marked by words like इव or मन्ये expressing the speaker's conjecture rather than plain comparison.

Alliteration: repetition of the same consonant sound in close succession, a sound-figure judged by the recurrence of letters rather than by similarity of meaning.

A sound-figure in which the same group of letters recurs with a different meaning each time; distinguished from alliteration because sense, not merely sound, changes.

A sense-figure in which one word or sentence yields two different meanings because of grammatical or lexical ambiguity, often praising two persons at once.

A metrical pattern of a Sanskrit verse defined by the fixed number of syllables per quarter and their heavy-light arrangement; identified by scanning the syllables.

One of the eight triples of heavy and light syllables used to describe metre, conventionally named म, य, र, स, त, ज, भ and न in prosodic notation.

A syllable in prosody; it is counted heavy when it contains a long vowel or a short vowel followed by a conjunct consonant, and light otherwise.

The euphonic combination of sounds at the meeting of words or morphemes, classified by the sounds involved, for example vowel, consonant or visarga junction.

Compound formation, in which several words are fused into a single inflected unit; the type is named by the relation of members, as तत्पुरुष or बहुव्रीहि.

A compound whose last member is principal and whose first member stands in a case relation to it, as राजपुत्रः, a prince, where the first word is in the genitive sense.

A compound denoting something other than its members, functioning as an adjective; the meaning lies outside the words, as लम्बोदरः, one having a hanging belly.

The semantic role a noun plays in relation to the verb, such as agent, object or instrument; Sanskrit grammar recognises six and assigns case endings accordingly.

A nominal case ending, eight in Sanskrit including the vocative; each ending is selected by the noun's role and by the verb or preposition-like word governing it.

The set of inflected forms of a noun or pronoun across all cases and both numbers; candidates are expected to recite and write paradigms such as राम, मुनि and सर्व.

The conjugated forms of a verbal root in a given tense, mood and voice, showing person and number; paradigm writing is a standard grammar exercise in this paper.

Any one of the ten tense-mood categories of the Sanskrit verb, named by the letter prefixed in traditional grammar, such as लट् for the present and लङ् for the imperfect.

The principal dramatic form, staged in several acts and drawing its plot from tradition or invention; the prescribed play is studied for characters, plot and dramatic technique.

The hero of a play, classified by qualities such as noble birth, valour and generosity; his conduct and speeches are frequent subjects of character questions.

An act of a Sanskrit play, a division marked by the entrance of characters and the change of setting; plot questions often ask what happens in a particular act.

An unseen prose passage set for comprehension; the candidate answers questions on fact, word meaning and grammar without any prior acquaintance with the text.

Translation, rendering a Sanskrit sentence into Bengali or English, or the reverse, keeping the sense and observing the target language's natural word order.

Composition: writing a short paragraph or letter in Sanskrit on a familiar topic, using correct case endings, agreement and simple connectives rather than ornate style.

The history of Sanskrit literature, covering its periods, major authors, their works and approximate dates; questions ask for authorship, genre and chronological placement.

A literary work in verse or prose valued for beauty of expression as well as meaning; the term frames questions about genre, authorship and the poet's art.

A long narrative poem in many cantos treating a heroic theme, with descriptions of seasons, battles and love; standard examples are works ascribed to Kālidāsa and Bhāravi.

Metre as a branch of study, the system of syllabic patterns under which verses are composed and by which they are scanned and named in examinations.

A figure of speech based on meaning rather than sound, such as simile or metaphor; contrasted with sound-figures like alliteration when a verse is analysed.