What is "bahuvrihi"

n. (context linguistics English) A type of nominal compound in which the first part modifies the second and neither part alone conveys the intended meaning.

A bahuvrihi compound (from Sanskrit बहुव्रीहि, bahuvrīhi, literally meaning "much rice" but denoting a rich man) is a type of compound that denotes a referent by specifying a certain characteristic or quality the referent possesses. A bahuvrihi is exocentric, so that the compound is not a hyponym of its head. For instance, a sabretooth ( smil-odon) is neither a sabre nor a tooth, but a feline with sabre-like teeth.

In Sanskrit bahuvrihis, the last constituent is a noun, more strictly, a nominal stem, while the whole compound is an adjective. In Vedic Sanskrit the accent is regularly on the first member ( tatpurusha rāja-pútra "a king's son", but bahuvrihi rājá-putra "having kings as sons", viz. rājá-putra-, m., "father of kings", rājá-putrā-, f., "mother of kings"), with the exception of a number of non-nominal prefixes such as the privative a; the word bahuvrīhí is itself likewise an exception to this rule.

In English bahuvrihis, the last constituent is usually a noun, while the whole compound is a noun or an adjective. Accent is on the first constituent. English bahuvrihis often describe people using synecdoche: flatfoot, half-wit, highbrow, lowlife, redhead, tenderfoot, longlegs, and white-collar.