Verse 2.278

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 2.278:

श्रुतिमात्रेण यत्रास्य ता(या) दर्थ्यमवसीयते ।
मुख्यं तमर्थं मन्यन्ते गौणं यत्रोपपादितम् ॥ २७८ ॥

śrutimātreṇa yatrāsya tā(yā) darthyamavasīyate |
mukhyaṃ tamarthaṃ manyante gauṇaṃ yatropapāditam || 278 ||

278. The meaning which is understood to be the purpose (that is, the main one) of a word as soon as it is heard is considered to be the main meaning whereas the one to which it is applied by a special effort is the secondary one.

Commentary

[If a word like go has many powers and it can be applied to a vāhīka also, how is one to decide which is the primary meaning and which the secondary one? The answer is: that which is understood directly from the word without the help of the context, by merely hearing the word is the main one. That which is understood with the help of the context and other words in the sentence is the secondary meaning.

Commenting on 275-278 together, the Vṛtti points out that certain tools and instruments, by virtue of their shape and power, are associated in the world with particular actions. Not that they cannot be used for doing other actions, but normally, they are meant for particular actions. They are not associated with nor called by the other actions: loke te tu karmāntareṣūpādīyamānāḥ sādhayanto'pi tamarthaṃ tadaṅgatvena vypadeśaṃ [vyapadeśaṃ?] na labhante. Similarly, words have normally the power to convey particular meanings, but they are sometimes used to convey other meanings secondarily but they do not become known in the world as being expressive of these meanings: pratyāyanaśaktimātraṃ tūpādāyānyatra prayujyamānāyāḥ pratyāyayanto'pi tānarthānstatsambandhitvena lake vyavasthayā prasiddhiṃ na labhante.]