adjective of little power, weak, impotent SN.ii.229; Mil.65; Sdhp.89.
acc. to Childers = Sk. *alpa + īśa + ākhya, the latter fr. ā + khyā “being called lord of little”; Trenckner on Mil.65 (see p. 422) says: “appesakkha & mahesakkha are traditionally expld. appaparivāra & mahāparivāra, the former, I suppose, from appe & sakkha (Sk. sākhya), the latter an imitation of it” Thus the etym. would be “having little association or friendship” and resemble the term appasattha. The BSk forms are alpeśākhya & maheśākhya, e.g. at Avs.ii.153; Divy.243