apsara

See also: apsará

English

Alternative forms

• upsara

A 12th century statue of an apsara.

Etymology

Borrowed from Hindi अप्सरा (apsarā), descended from Sanskrit अप्सरस् (apsaras).

Noun

apsara (plural apsaras)

1. (Indian mythology, Hinduism, Buddhism) A female spirit of the clouds and waters.
   • 1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 40:

     But the boy's relatives don't sit on their behinds and wait for a pari or an apsara to drop out of the heavens.

   • 2004, Khushwant Singh, Burial at Sea, Penguin, published 2014, page 102:

     But here was an apsara rising out of the waters of a holy Ganga, raising her arms in salutation to the sun rising above the range of hills and offering her behind to him to marvel at and worship.

   • 2006, Vikram Chandra, Sacred Games, volume 1, Penguin, published 2007, page 17:

     Don't burn us with your fierce austerities, O master. I'll have to send apsaras to distract you.

Translations

a female spirit of the clouds and waters

• Bengali: অপ্সরা (bn) (opśora)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 飛天 / 飞天 (zh) (fēitiān)

• French: apsara (fr) f
• German: Apsará f
• Gujarati: અપ્સરા f (apsarā)
• Hindi: अप्सरा (hi) f (apsarā)
• Japanese: アプサラス (apusarazu), 飛天 (ja) (hiten)
• Kannada: ಅಪ್ಸರೆಯರು (apsareyaru)
• Khmer: អប្សរា (km) (apsa‘raa), អប្សរ (km) (ʼappsɑɑ), រម្ភា (km) (rumphiə)
• Korean: 압사라 (absala), 비천상 (bicheonsang)
• Malayalam: അപ്സരസ്സ് (ml) (apsarassŭ)
• Marathi: अप्सरा (mr) (apsarā)
• Odia: ଅପ୍‌ସରା (ap‌sarā)
• Portuguese: apsara f, apsará f
• Punjabi: ਅਪਸਰਾ (pa) f (apasrā)
• Russian: апса́ра f (apsára)
• Sanskrit: अप्सरा (sa) f (apsarā)
• Tamil: அப்சரா (apcarā)
• Telugu: అప్సరస (te) (apsarasa)
• Thai: อัปสร (th) (àp-sŏn)
• Vietnamese: phi thiên

Anagrams

• sarapa

Indonesian

Etymology

From Sanskrit अप्सरस् (apsaras). Doublet of apsari.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ap.sa.ra/
• Hyphenation: ap‧sa‧ra

Noun

apsara

1. (archaeology) heavenly deity

Further reading

• “apsara” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Portuguese

Alternative forms

• apsará

Noun

apsara f (plural apsaras)

1. (Indian mythology) apsara (a female spirit of the clouds and waters)