śabdaḥ
Sound; word; verbal means of knowledge - a pramāṇam.
In Vedanta
As a pramāṇam, śabda refers to words — specifically the words of the Vedas — functioning as a valid, independent means of knowledge. Words operate by removing ignorance about an already-existing thing. The Upaniṣadic words do not create Brahman or produce a new state; they reveal what is already the case — that you are Brahman.