# हेतु
## Hindi
### Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit हेतु (hetu). Cognate with Marathi हेतू (hetū).

### Pronunciation

* (Delhi) IPA: /ɦeː.t̪uː/

### Noun

हेतु • (hetu) m
* cause, reason (that which causes)
    Synonyms: कारण (kāraṇ), वजह (vajah)
* motive (reason for a particular action)
    मगर हत्या का हेतु क्या था?magar hatyā kā hetu kyā thā?But what was the motive for the killing?

#### Declension
## Old Gujarati
### Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit हेतु (hetú).

### Noun

हेतु • (hetu) m
* cause, reason

## Pali
### Alternative forms

* hetu (Latin script)
* 𑀳𑁂𑀢𑀼 (Brahmi script)
* হেতু (Bengali script)
* හෙතු (Sinhalese script)
* ဟေတု or ႁေတု (Burmese script)
* เหตุ (Thai script)
* ᩉᩮᨲᩩ (Tai Tham script)
* ເຫຕຸ (Lao script)
* ហេតុ (Khmer script)
* 𑄦𑄬𑄖𑄪 (Chakma script)

### Noun

हेतु m
* Devanagari script form of hetu

#### Declension
## Sanskrit
### Alternative forms

* হেতু (Assamese script)
* ᬳᬾᬢᬸ (Balinese script)
* হেতু (Bengali script)
* 𑰮𑰸𑰝𑰲 (Bhaiksuki script)
* 𑀳𑁂𑀢𑀼 (Brahmi script)
* ဟေတု (Burmese script)
* હેતુ (Gujarati script)
* ਹੇਤੁ (Gurmukhi script)
* 𑌹𑍇𑌤𑍁 (Grantha script)
* ꦲꦺꦠꦸ (Javanese script)
* 𑂯𑂵𑂞𑂳 (Kaithi script)
* ಹೇತು (Kannada script)
* ហេតុ (Khmer script)
* ເຫຕຸ (Lao script)
* ഹേതു (Malayalam script)
* ᡥᡝᢠᡠ (Manchu script)
* 𑘮𑘹𑘝𑘳 (Modi script)
* ᠾᠧᢐᠤ (Mongolian script)
* 𑧎𑧚𑦽𑧔 (Nandinagari script)
* 𑐴𑐾𑐟𑐸 (Newa script)
* ହେତୁ (Odia script)
* ꢲꢾꢡꢸ (Saurashtra script)
* 𑆲𑆼𑆠𑆶 (Sharada script)
* 𑖮𑖸𑖝𑖲 (Siddham script)
* හෙතු (Sinhalese script)
* 𑪂𑩔𑩫𑩒 (Soyombo script)
* 𑚩𑚲𑚙𑚰 (Takri script)
* ஹேது (Tamil script)
* హేతు (Telugu script)
* เหตุ (Thai script)
* ཧེ་ཏུ (Tibetan script)
* 𑒯𑒹𑒞𑒳 (Tirhuta script)
* 𑨱𑨄𑨙𑨃 (Zanabazar Square script)

### Etymology

Compound of हि (hi) +‎ तु (tu).

### Noun

हेतु • (hetú) stem, m
* "impulse", motive, cause, cause of, reason for (+locative, rarely dative or genitive)
    हेतुना (hetunā), हेतोः (hetoḥ), हेतवे (hetave), हेतौ (hetau) — for a cause or reason, by reason of, on account of (+genitive or compound):
    मम हेतोः (mama hetoḥ) or मद्-धेतोः (mad-dhetoḥ) — on account of me
    कं हेतुम् (kaṃ hetum) or को हेटुः (ko heṭuḥ) — wherefore?, why?
    यतो हेतोः (yato hetoḥ) — because
    अनेन हेतुना (anena hetunā) or इति हेतोः (iti hetoḥ) — for this reason
    मृत्यु-हेतवे (mṛtyu-hetave) — in order to kill
    हेतुर् अलौकिकः (hetur alaukikaḥ) — a supernatural cause
* (at the end of a compound) "having as a cause or motive", "caused or effected or actuated or attracted or impelled by"
    कर्महेतु (karma-hetu) — caused by the acts (of a former existence)
    मांसहेतु (māṃsa-hetu) — attracted by (the smell of) flesh
    कर्मफलहेतु (karma-phala-hetu) — impelled by (the expectation of) the consequences of any act
* a logical reason or deduction or argument, the reason for an inference (especially applied to the second member or अवयव (avayava) of the five-membered syllogism; compare न्याय (nyāya))
* logic (in general, compare हेतुविद्या (hetuvidyā))
* (grammar) the agent of the causal verb
* (with Buddhists) primary cause (as opposed to प्रत्यय (pratyaya))
* (with पशुपति (paśu-pati)s) that which causes the bondage of the soul i.e. the external world and the senses
* the means
    हेतुभिः (hetubhiḥ) (at the end of a compound) — by means of
* mode, manner
    हेतुभिः (hetubhiḥ) (at the end of a compound) — according to
* price, cost
* condition
* (rhetoric) = काव्यलिङ्ग (kāvya-liṅga)

#### Declension

* ¹Vedic

#### Descendants

* Pali: hetu
** → Khmer: ហេតុ (haet), ហែត (haet)
** → Northern Thai: เหตุ, ᩉᩮᨲᩩ, ᩉᩮ᩠ᨲᩩ
** → Thai: เหตุ (hèet)
* → Hindi: हेतु (hetu)
* → Marathi: हेतू (hetū)
* → Old Gujarati: हेतु (hetu)

### References

* Monier Williams (1899) “हेतु”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 1303.