Sanskrit

American  

[san-skrit] / ˈsæn skrɪt /

Older Spelling, Sanscrit

noun

• Sanskrits
  plural

1. an Indo-European, Indic language, in use since c1200 b.c. as the religious and classical literary language of India. Skt, Skt., Skr., Skrt

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adjective

1. Also Sanskritic of or relating to Sanskrit.

Sanskrit British  

/ ˈsænskrɪt /

noun

1. an ancient language of India, the language of the Vedas, of Hinduism, and of an extensive philosophical and scientific literature dating from the beginning of the first millennium _bc. It is the oldest recorded member of the Indic branch of the Indo-European family of languages; recognition of the existence of the Indo-European family arose in the 18th century from a comparison of Sanskrit with Greek and Latin. Although it is used only for religious purposes, it is one of the official languages of India

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Sanskrit Cultural  

1. The language of ancient India, and one of the oldest languages of the Indo-European family, to which English belongs.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Sanskritist
  noun
• non-Sanskritic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• Sanskrits
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Sanskrit

First recorded in 1610–20; from Sanskrit saṃskṛta “adorned, perfected”; cf. Prakrit ( def. ), Pali ( def. )

Compare meaning

How does sanskrit compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Sanskrit vs. Hindi

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Sanskrit Sanskrits

Not many recall his reported invocation of another work of Sanskrit poetry that reads, “In sleep, in confusion, in the depths of shame/The good deeds a man has done before defend him.”

From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026

If all goes to plan, the Indian test launch mission called Aagman - Sanskrit for arrival - will place into orbit six payloads.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

Anand Desai launched New York-based Darsana, which takes its name for a Sanskrit word that means seeing the true nature of reality, in 2014 with about $1.4 billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026

India is also reported to be readying a test-fire of the latest model of the domestically developed ballistic Agni missile -- meaning "fire" in Sanskrit -- capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads.

From Barron's ● May 7, 2026

It also reminded me of my wedding, when I had repeated endless Sanskrit verses after the priest, verses I barely understood, which joined me to my wife.

From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri

In passin' lemme add dat milk is f'm de ol' language used by de Sanskrits, meanin' gin.

From Lady Luck by Hugh Wiley