dvandva

[ dvahn-dvah, dvuhn-dvuh ]

noun

, Grammar.

1. a compound word neither element of which is subordinate to the other, as bittersweet, Anglo-Saxon.

dvandva

/ ˈdvɑːndvɑː /

noun

1. a class of compound words consisting of two elements having a coordinate relationship as if connected by and
2. a compound word of this type, such as Austro-Hungarian, tragicomic

Word History and Origins

Origin of dvandva¹

1840–50; < Sanskrit, nasalized reduplication of dva two

Word History and Origins

Origin of dvandva¹

from Sanskrit dvamdva a pair, from the reduplication of dva two

Example Sentences

We have what we call in Sanskrit dvandva, a series of opposites in creation; such as, the positive pole and the negative, the centripetal force and the centrifugal, attraction and repulsion.

From Project Gutenberg