किम् n. aind. (
fr. 1.कि, originally
nom. and
acc. sg. n. of
2.क॑q.v. ), what? how? whence? wherefore? why?
किम् b is much used as a particle of interrogation like the
Lat. num,
an, sometimes translatable by ‘whether?’ but oftener serving only like a note of interrogation to mark a question (
e.g. किं व्याधा वने ऽस्मिन् संचरन्ति, ‘do hunters roam about in this wood?’ In an interrogation the verb, if uncompounded with a preposition, generally retains its accent after ,
[Pāṇ. 8-1, 44] ). To this sense may be referred the expressing inferiority, deficiency, &c. at the beginning of compounds (
e.g. किं-राजन्, what sort of king?
i.e. a bad king,
[Pāṇ. 2-1, 64; 5-4, 70] )
किम् also the prefixed to verbs with a similar meaning (
e.g. किम्-अधी-ते, he reads badly,
[Pāṇ. 8-1, 44] ,
[Kāś.] ) —
उत, or —
उत-वा or —
अथवा—
उत, whether—or—or,
[R.] ;
[Śak.] ;
[Bhartṛ.] &c. (
cf. उत॑.)
किम् c is very frequently connected with other particles, as follows:
कि॑म् अङ्ग॑, wherefore then?
[RV.] अथ किम् See
अ॑थकिम् अपि , somewhat, to a considerable extent, rather, much more, still further,
[Śak.] ;
[Megh.] &c.
किम् इति , why?
[Śak.] ;
[Kum.] ;
[Pañcat.] &c.
किम्-इव , what for?
[Śiś. xvi, 31] किम्-उ or
कि॑म्-उत॑ how much more? how much less?
[RV.] ;
[ŚBr.] ;
[MBh.] &c.
किं किल , what a pity! (expressing dissatisfaction),
[Pāṇ. 3-3, 146] किं-च , moreover, further,
[Pañcat.] ;
[Kathās.] &c.
what more (expressing impatience),
[Śak.] किं-चन (originally
-च न, negative = ‘in no way’), to a certain degree, a little,
[Kathās.] (with a negation) in no way, not at all,
[MBh. i, 6132] किं-चिद् , somewhat, a little,
[MBh.] ;
[R.] &c.
किं तर्हि , how then? but, however,
[Pāṇ. 2-2, 4] ;
[Pat.] ;
4-1, 163,
[Kāś.] किं-तु , but, however, nevertheless (bearing the same relation to
तु that
किं-च bears to
च),
[MBh.] ;
[R.] &c.
किं-नु , whether indeed? (a stronger interrogative than
किम् alone),
[MBh.] ;
[R.] &c.
how much more? how much less?
[Bhag. i, 35] किं नु खलु , how possibly? (a still stronger interrogative),
[Śak.] किम् पुनर् , how much more? how much less?
[R.] ;
[Bhag. ix, 33 &c.] however,
[Bālar.] but,
ib.किं वा , whether? or whether?
[Śak.] ;
[Pañcat.] &c.
or (often a mere particle of interrogation)
किं स्विद् , why?
[Kathās. xxvi, 75] किम् a stronger interrogative than alone,
[RV.] ;
[MBh.] ;
[Kathās.] किम् d (in
comp. )