Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A polite or respectful gesture of greeting or farewell widely used among Hindus and made by pressing the palms together at an upward angle in front of the chest and generally accompanied by a slight bow.
  • interjection Used to express a polite or respectful greeting or farewell.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • interjection respectful greetings
  • noun India The use of the greeting in which you put your hands together and then bow slightly.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Ultimately (via Hindi, Punjabi, and other South Asian languages) from Sanskrit namaskāraḥ, act of saying namaḥ in homage : namaḥ, namas-, homage, obeisance; see nem- in Indo-European roots + kāra-, doing, making (from karoti, he makes; see kwer- in Indo-European roots).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Sanskrit नमस्कार namaskār नमस्कार namaskāra, from namas: "to bow", "obeisance" and kāra: "action".

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