Mashrabaمشربة

زيلnot an original root; the yāʾ stands in for a wāw; tazāyul means mutual separation. (root zyl)

الزاي والياء واللام ليس أصلا لكن الياء فيه مبدلة من واو وقد مضى ذكره وذكرت هنالك كلمات اللفظ فالتزايل التباين

Ibn Fāris, Maqāyīs al-lugha · English rendering

زيل
Patterns computed · our data

The words of ز ي ل that our sources attest: the root's letters in green, the added letters in gold.

19 words7 verbs6 verbal nouns1 participle2 places and instruments1 intensive or elative2 other nouns

  • زَالَتَcease; stop being
  • أَزالَhe removed it
  • زَيَّلَhe separated it
  • تَزَيَّلُthey became separated much, or greatly, or widely
  • زايَلَhe separated himself from him
The whole family6 groups, by pattern; tap a pattern to see what it does
Verbs7زَالَتَ · أَزالَ · زَيَّلَ

The root as an action: the bare Form I, and the Forms made by adding letters before, inside or after the root.grammar →

Verbal nouns6تَزَايُل · زَيْل · تَزَيُّل

The action itself, named as a noun (maṣdar).grammar →

  • تَزَايُلForm V · Lane: inf. n.LaneIbn Fāris
  • زَيْلForm I · Lane: inf. n.LaneIbn Fāris
  • تَزَيُّلForm V · Lane: inf. n.Lane
  • تَزْيِيلForm II · Lane: inf. n.Lane
Participles1مُزَايِل

The one who does it, and the one it is done to.grammar →

  • مُزَايِلthe beloved, or the friend, who is in a state of separation, or disunionLaneactive, Form IIILane
Place, time and instrument2مِزْيَال · مِزْيَل

Where or when it happens, and what it is done with: the m- nouns.grammar →

  • مِزْيَالnoun of instrumentLane
  • مِزْيَلman acute or sharp or quick in intellect, clever, ingenious, skilful, …Lanenoun of instrumentLane
Intensives, qualities and the elative1أَزْيَل

The quality carried far, held as a trait, or compared.grammar →

  • أَزْيَلelative or colour adjective (afʿal)Lane
Other nouns2زَيَل · مُتَزَايِلَة

Nouns on other patterns; their meaning is learned word by word.grammar →

  • زَيَلwidth between the thighsLanenounLaneIbn Fāris
  • مُتَزَايِلَةwoman who veils her face from menLanenounLane
Why this shape?What each of the 13 patterns does

What each pattern does. The pattern gives a tendency, not a rule: many words have drifted into meanings of their own.

The pattern machinePour the root into a pattern; see whether the word exists

Choose a pattern; the root's letters pour into it. Then see whether the word exists in our sources. The machine makes shapes; only usage makes words.

مَفْعَلَةز ي لمَزْيَلَة

Not in our sources. A possible shape, not a word we can show: the Quran, the library and Lane do not have it for this root.

Place noun with -a. The place noun with the feminine -a. Sometimes it is only a variant of mafʿal; often it names the place where a thing is found in abundance (maʾsada, 'a place full of lions'). So maktab is the place of writing, and maktaba, where writings are gathered: a library, a bookshop. Our summary

But: maktaba is not in our classical dictionaries for k-t-b: Lane and al-Jawharī give maktab ('a school'), none gives maktaba. Its sense of 'library, bookshop' fits the pattern of abundance, but that is our reading of the pattern, not a classical entry. Many mafʿala words are single items of usage (maqbara 'cemetery'), which the grammarians call heard, not formed by rule.

The grammarians on this pattern (4)
  • ما يكون مفعلة لازمة لها الهاء والفتحة … وذلك إذا أردت أن تكثر الشيء بالمكان، وذلك قولك: أرض مسبعة، ومأسدة

    Chapter on what is mafʿala, with the -a and the a-vowel always: that is when you mean that a thing abounds in a place, as you say 'a land of many beasts of prey (masbaʿa), of many lions (maʾsada)'

    Sībawayh (d. c. 180/796), al-Kitāb, ed. ʿAbd al-Salām Hārūn, 3rd ed. (Cairo: al-Khānjī, 1988), 4:94 · OpenITI line 21027–21028 ↗ · on this site · OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

  • و نحو المظنة و المقبرة فتحا و ضما ليس بقياس

    and words like maẓinna and maqbara (with a or u) are not by rule

    Ibn al-Ḥājib (d. 646/1249), al-Shāfiya fī ʿilm al-taṣrīf, ed. Ḥasan Aḥmad al-ʿUthmān (Mecca: al-Maktaba al-Makkiyya, 1995), 1:30 · OpenITI line 223 ↗ · on this site · OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

  • “designate the place where the object signified by the noun from which they are formed, is found in large numbers or quantities” Wright, Grammar I, §247, p. 148 ↗ · on nouns of abundance, maf'ala · 3rd ed. (Cambridge, 1896) · public domain
  • “Nouns of time and place not unfrequently take the feminine form” Wright, Grammar I, §225, p. 128 ↗ · on maf'ala as a variant of maf'al · 3rd ed. (Cambridge, 1896) · public domain

This root has a weak or doubled letter, so real words change shape (qāla → qāʾil, not qāwil); the machine pours the letters in as they are, and matches attested words by their regular pattern.

About thisWhat “attested” means here; the sources

Attested means found in our data: the Quranic Arabic Corpus (lemmas, verb Forms, participles, verbal nouns, plurals), the library's words (automatic analysis), Lane's Lexicon (his headwords, the Forms he numbers, the verbal nouns and plurals he names) and Ibn Fāris's entry. Nothing is generated for this list. Meanings are Lane's first gloss in his entry, or else the analyser's gloss (“auto”). Vowelling follows the corpus, then Lane, then the analyser; verbs are given in the regular perfect. Lane's Lexicon thins out after qāf, and a few of his entries cover several roots at once: those roots show no Lane. The patterns, written with ف ع ل, are computed by us.

English: AI translation
  • al-Khalīl · 170Al-zawl (الزول): the light-hearted, witty young man.

    al-Khalīl b. Aḥmad (d. c. 170/786), Kitāb al-ʿAyn. The first Arabic dictionary, arranged by permutations of the root letters.

    Al-zawl (الزول): the light-hearted, witty young man. A waṣīfa zawla (وصيفة زولة) is a [female servant] efficient/skillful in [carrying out] messages and errands. And fityān azwāl (فتيان أزوال) [pl.]. Al-muzāwala (المزاولة): dealing/handling of matters. Al-zawāl (الزوال): the passing away of dominion. And the zawāl (declining) of the sun likewise: zālat al-shamsu zawālan (زالت الشمس زوالا) [the sun declined]; zālat al-khaylu bi-rukbānihā zawālan (زالت الخيل بركبانها زوالا) [the horses passed by with their riders]; and one says zāla zawāla fulānin wa-zawīlahu (زال زوال فلان وزويله). He said: 'This daytime showed from her sorrow what concerns her — by night has her passing away (zawāl) passed?' [He put] al-nahār (النهار) in the accusative as a description. They differed as to its meaning: some said he meant 'may God make her passing away pass' [i.e. a curse against her]; others said its meaning was 'the phantom (al-khayāl) has passed away, its passing.' The Arabs drop the alif, meaning azāla (أزال), as Dhū al-Rumma said: 'And a white one that does not shy from us, nor does her mother — When we met, from us her fleeing away (zawīl) fled.' He did not say azīl (أزيل).

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الزول: الفتى الخفيف الظريف. ووصيفة زولة، أي: نافذة في الرسائل والحوائج. وفتيان أزوال. والمزاولة: المعالجة في الأشياء. والزوال: ذهاب الملك. وزوال الشمس كذلك.. زالت الشمس زوالا، وزالت الخيل بركبانها زوالا، وزال زوال فلان وزويله، قال «79» : هذا النهار بدا لها من همها ... ما بالها بالليل زال زوالها ونصب النهار على الصفة «80» . اختلفوا في [ما] يعنيه، فقال بعضهم: أراد به: أزال الله زوالها، دعاء عليها.. وقال بعضهم: [معناه] : زال الخيال زوالها، والعرب تلقي الألف، والمعنى: أزال، كما قال ذو الرمة: «81» [وبيضاء لا تنحاش منا وأمها] ... إذا ما التقينا زيل منا زويلها ولم يقل: أزيل.

  • al-Jawharī · 393Al-zawl (الزول): wonder/amazement.

    al-Jawharī (d. c. 393/1003), al-Ṣiḥāḥ. Admits only usage he judged sound.

    Al-zawl (الزول): wonder/amazement. Al-Kumayt said: 'I have indeed become, regarding her, through old age, a marvel (zawlan) in her eyes' — he [in this sense] is al-azwal (الأزول), plural azwāl (أزوال). Al-zawl also means the light-witted, clever man; Ibn al-Sikkīt said: one is amazed at his wit. The woman [is called] zawla (زولة). It is also said [zawla means] the sharp-witted, shrewd woman. Al-zawwāl (الزوال) [describes one] who moves about a great deal in his walking while covering little distance. Abū ʿAmr cited: 'the short, thickset zawwāl (البحتر المجدر الزوال).' Al-zāʾila (الزائلة): anything that moves. [As in the verse]: 'I was once a man who shot at zawāʾil (الزوائل, moving creatures), but now I have bid farewell to shooting at zawāʾil.' Al-zidyāl (الزديال): removal (al-izāla). And it is said: '[the one] who wanted to remove her (izdiyālahā).' Al-muzāwala (المزاولة) is like al-muḥāwala and al-muʿālaja (contending/handling). A man said to another who had reproached him with cowardice: 'By God, I was not a coward, but I was contending (zāwaltu) with an appointed king/death.' Zuhayr said: 'So we spent the night standing at the head of our steed, it contending (yuzāwilunā) with us over itself, and we contending (nuzāwiluhu) with it.' Tazāwalū (تزاولوا): they contended with one another. Zāla al-shayʾu min makānihi yazūlu zawālan (زال الشيء من مكانه يزول زوالا): the thing passed away from its place; azālahu ghayruhu wa-zawwalahu (أزاله غيره وزوله) [another made it pass], fa-inzāla (فانزال) [so it was made to pass]. Mā zāla fulānun yafʿalu kadhā (ما زال فلان يفعل كذا) [so-and-so continued doing such-and-such]. Abū al-Khaṭṭāb reported [the alternate form]: mā zīla yafʿalu kadhā (ما زيل يفعل كذا), which we have explained under [the root] kāda (كاد).

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الزول: العجب. قال الكميت: فقد صرت عما لها بالمشيب زولا لديها هو الازول والجمع الا زوال. والزول: الرجل الخفيف الظريف. قال ابن السكيت: يعجب من ظرفه. والمرأة زولة. ويقال: هي الفطنة الداهية. والزوال: الذي يتحرك في مشيته كثيرا وما يقطعه من المسافة قليل (1) . وأنشد أبو عمرو * البحتر المجدر الزوال (1) * والزائلة: كل شئ يتحرك. وكنت امرأ أرمي الزوائل مرة فأصبحت قد ودعت رمى الزوائل (2) والزديال: الازالة. وقال: ممن أراد ازديالها (3) * والمزاولة، مثل المحاولة والمعالجة. وقال رجل لآخر عيره بالجبن: والله ما كنت جبانا ولكني زاولت ملكا مؤجلا. وقال زهير: فبتنا وقوفا عند رأس جوادنا يزاولنا عن نفسه ونزاوله وتزاولوا: تعالجوا. وزال الشئ من مكانه يزول زوالا، وأزاله غيره وزوله، فانزال. وما زال فلان يفعل كذا. وحكى أبو الخطاب: ما زيل يفعل كذا، وقد فسرناه في (كاد) .

  • Ibn Fāris · 395Zāy, yāʾ, and lām is not a [true] root, but the yāʾ in it is substituted from wāw, and this has already been mentioned, and the words of this form were mentioned there.

    Ibn Fāris (d. 395/1004), Maqāyīs al-Lugha. Seeks each root's original sense (aṣl).

    Zāy, yāʾ, and lām is not a [true] root, but the yāʾ in it is substituted from wāw, and this has already been mentioned, and the words of this form were mentioned there. Al-tazāyul (التزايل) means separation/divergence. One says zayyaltu baynahu (زيلت بينه), meaning 'I separated between it.' God Almighty said: 'fa-zayyalnā baynahum' (فزيلنا بينهم) ["We separated them"]. And it is said that al-zayal (الزيل) is the wideness/gap between the two thighs, like al-faḥaj (الفحج). And it is reported from al-Shaybānī — if correct — that tazāyala fulānun ʿan fulānin (تزايل فلان عن فلان) means 'so-and-so felt shy/modest toward so-and-so,' and that is analogous to this [root], if it is sound.

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الزاي والياء واللام ليس أصلا لكن الياء فيه مبدلة من واو وقد مضى ذكره وذكرت هنالك كلمات اللفظ فالتزايل التباين يقال زيلت بينه أي فرقت قال الله تعالى ( فزيلنا بينهم ) ويقال إن الزيل تباعد ما بين الفخذين كالفحج وذكر عن الشيباني إن كان صحيحا تزايل فلان عن فلان إذا احتشمه وهو ذاك القياس إن صح

  • Lisān · 711Al-zawāl (الزوال): passing away, transformation, and vanishing.

    Ibn Manẓūr (d. 711/1311), Lisān al-ʿArab. The great compendium of the earlier dictionaries (entry shortened).

    Al-zawāl (الزوال): passing away, transformation, and vanishing. Zāla yazūlu zawālan wa-zawīlan wa-zuʾūlan (زال يزول زوالا وزويلا وزؤولا) — this is from al-Liḥyānī. Dhū al-Rumma said: 'And a white one that does not shy from us, nor does her mother — When she saw us, from us her fleeing (zawīl) fled.' He meant by 'the white one' (al-bayḍāʾ) the ostrich egg; 'does not shy from us' means does not startle; and 'her mother' is the ostrich hen that laid it — when she saw us she was frightened and darted off in fright, and that is the meaning of 'from us her zawīl fled.' Zāla al-shayʾu ʿan makānihi yazūlu zawālan (زال الشيء عن مكانه يزول زوالا): the thing departed from its place; azālahu ghayruhu wa-zawwalahu (أزاله غيره وزوله) [another made it depart], fa-inzāla (فانزال) [so it departed]. Mā zāla yafʿalu kadhā wa-kadhā (ما زال يفعل كذا وكذا) [he continued doing such and such]. Abū al-Khaṭṭāb reported that some Arabs say kida Zaydun yafʿalu kadhā (كيد زيد يفعل كذا) and mā zīla yafʿalu kadhā (ما زيل يفعل كذا), meaning kāda and zāla, transferring the kasra to the kāf in the verb-pattern faʿila, just as they transferred it in faʿiltu. Azaltuhu wa-zawwaltuhu wa-zultuhu (أزلته وزولته وزلته) [all mean] I made it pass — azīluhu (أزيله) [I remove it]; and zultu ʿan makānī azūlu zawālan wa-zuʾūlan (زلت عن مكاني أزول زوالا وزؤولا) [I departed from my place]; azaltu ghayrī izālatan (أزلت غيري إزالة) [I made someone else depart] — all this from al-Liḥyānī. Ibn al-Aʿrābī: al-zawl (الزول) [means] movement. One says raʾaytu shabaḥan thumma zāla (رأيت شبحا ثم زال) — 'I saw a shape/silhouette, then it moved,' i.e. it stirred. Zāla al-qawmu ʿan makānihim (زال القوم عن مكانهم): the people, when they veered away from it and withdrew. Abū al-Haytham: One says istaḥil hādhā al-shakhṣa wa-stazillahu (استحل هذا الشخص واستزله), meaning 'watch to see whether it shifts, i.e. moves (yataḥawwal), or passes away (yazūl), i.e. departs from its place.' Al-zawwāl (الزوال) [describes one] who moves about a great deal in his walking while covering little distance; Abū ʿAmr cited: 'the short, thickset zawwāl (البحتر المجدر الزوال).' Ibn Barrī said: this rajaz verse is by Abū al-Aswad al-ʿIjlī, and he said it is entirely altered; what Abū ʿAmr cited [is a corruption of]: 'the short, thickset zawwāk (البهتر المجذر الزواك),' and before it: 'she presented herself, well-throated, weaving / to a rising, sturdy, vigorous [youth].' Al-mujadhdhar and al-jaydhar [both mean] short. In the ḥadīth of Kaʿb ibn Mālik: he saw a man in white whom the mirage was making to appear (yazūlu bihi al-sarāb), meaning it raised and displayed him. One says: zāla bihi al-sarāb (زال به السراب) when his figure appears in it as a phantom. From this is the saying of Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr: 'A day when the hillocks of the earth continue, raised up by the shimmering mirages, in confusion and alternation (tazyīl).' He means that the shimmerings of the mirage appear beyond the hillocks of the earth, at times raising them and at times lowering them. Al-zawl (الزول): al-zawalān (الزولان) [the passing/moving]. Zāla al-mulku zawālan (زال الملك زوالا): the dominion passed away; and one says zāla zawāluhu (زال زواله) when a prayer is made for its continuance, and azāla Allāhu zawālahu (أزال الله زواله) [may God make its passing pass away, i.e. prolong it]. Yaʿqūb said: one says azāla Allāhu zawālahu and zāla Allāhu zawālahu [both] as an invocation of destruction and affliction upon him — so he said, though the correct [understanding] is that it is invoked against him. As for the saying of al-Aʿshā: 'This daytime showed from her sorrow — what concerns her? By night has her passing away (zawāl) passed?' it is said its meaning is: the phantom's passing has passed away from her. Ibn al-Aʿrābī said: he disliked the phantom because it stirs up his longing. It may also be according to the other usage, meaning 'may God make her passing away pass' [i.e. prolong her], and this is supported by Abū ʿAmr's transmission of it with the nominative ending — zāla zawāluhā (زال زوالها) — by poetic license (al-iqwāʾ). [entry continues]

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الزوال: الذهاب والاستحالة والاضمحلال، زال يزول زوالا وزويلا وزؤولا؛ هذه عن اللحياني؛ قال ذو الرمة: وبيضاء لا تنحاش منا وأمها، ... إذا ما رأتنا زيل منا زويلها أراد بالبيضاء بيضة النعامة، لا تنحاش منا أي لا تنفر، وأمها النعامة التي باضتها إذا رأتنا ذعرت منا وجفلت نافرة، وذلك معنى قوله زيل منا زويلها. وزال الشيء عن مكانه يزول زوالا وأزاله غيره وزوله فانزال، وما زال يفعل كذا وكذا. وحكى أبو الخطاب: أن ناسا من العرب يقولون كيد زيد يفعل كذا، وما زيل يفعل كذا؛ يريدون كاد وزال فنقلوا الكسر إلى الكاف في فعل كما نقلوا في فعلت. وأزلته وزولته وزلته أزاله وأزيله وزلت عن مكاني أزول زوالا وزؤولا وأزلت غيري إزالة؛ كل ذلك عن اللحياني. ابن الأعرابي: الزول الحركة؛ يقال رأيت شبحا ثم زال أي تحرك. وزال القوم عن مكانهم إذا حاصوا عنه وتنحوا. أبو الهيثم: يقال استحل هذا الشخص واستزله أي انظر هل يحول أي يتحرك أو يزول أي يفارق موضعه. والزوال: الذي يتحرك في مشيه كثيرا وما يقطعه من المسافة قليل؛ وأنشد أبو عمرو: البحتر المجدر الزوال قال ابن بري: الرجز لأبي الأسود العجلي، قال: وهو مغير كله «3» والذي أنشده أبو عمرو: البهتر المجذر الزواك وقبله: تعرضت مريئة الحياك ... لناشئ دمكمك نياك والمجذر والجيذر: القصير. وفي حديث كعب بن مالك: رأى رجلا مبيضا يزول به السراب أي يرفعه ويظهره. يقال: زال به السراب إذا ظهر شخصه فيه خيالا؛ ومنه قول كعب بن زهير: يوما تظل حداب الأرض يرفعها، ... من اللوامع، تخليط وتزييل يريد أن لوامع السراب تبدو دون حداب الأرض فترفعها تارة وتخفضها أخرى. والزول: الزولان. وزال الملك زوالا، وزال زواله إذا دعي له بالإقامة، وأزال الله زواله. وقال يعقوب: يقال أزال الله زواله وزال الله زواله يدعو له بالهلاك والبلاء؛ هكذا قال، والصواب يدعو عليه؛ وقول الأعشى: هذا النهار بدا لها من همها، ... ما بالها بالليل زال زوالها؟ قيل: معناه زال الخيال زوالها؛ قال ابن الأعرابي: وإنما كره الخيال لأنه يهيج شوقه وقد يكون على اللغة الأخيرة أي أزال الله زوالها، ويقوي ذلك رواية أبي عمرو إياه بالرفع: زال زوالها، على الإقواء؛ قال أبو عمرو: هذا مثل للعرب قديم تستعمله هكذا بالرفع فسمعه الأعشى فجاء به على استعماله، والأمثال تؤدى على ما فرط به أول أحوال وقوعها كقولهم: أطري إنك ناعلة، والصيف ضيعت اللبن، وأطرق كرا، وأصبح نومان، يؤدى ذلك في كل موضع على صورته التي أنشئ في مبدئه عليها، وغير أبي عمرو روى هذا المثل بالنصب بغير إقواء، على معنى زال عنا طيفها بالليل كزوالها هي بالنهار؛ وقال أبو بكر: زال زوالها أي أزال الله زوالها أي زال خيالها حين تزول، فنصب زوالها في قوله على الوقت ومذهب المحل. ويقال: ركوبي ركوب الأمير، والمصادر المؤقتة تجري مجرى الأوقات. ويقال: ألقى عبد الله خروجه من منزله أي حين خروجه. ابن السكيت: يقال أزاله عن مكانه يزيله، وحكي زيل زواله، ويقال: زال الشيء من الشيء يزيله زيلا إذا مازه، وزلته فلم ينزل. قال أبو منصور: وهذا يحقق ما قاله أبو بكر في قوله زال زوالها أنه بمعنى أزال الله زوالها. والازديال: الإزالة، وقال كثير: أحاطت يداه بالخلافة، بعد ما ... أراد رجال آخرون ازديالها وقوله عز وجل: فأزلهما الشيطان؛ فسره ثعلب فقال: معناه نحاهما عن موضعهما. والزوائل: النجوم لزوالها من المشرق إلى المغرب في استدارتها. والزوال: زوال الشمس وزوال الملك ونحو ذلك مما يزول عن حاله. وزالت الشمس زوالا وزوولا، بغير همز، كذلك نص عليه ثعلب، وزيالا وزولانا: زلت عن كبد السماء. وزال النهار: ارتفع، من ذلك. وفي حديث جندب الجهني: والله لقد خالطه سهماي ولو كان زائلة لتحرك ؛ الزائلة: كل شيء من الحيوان يزول عن مكانه، ولا يستقر في مكانه، يقع على الإنسان وغيره، وكأن هذا المرمي قد سكن نفسه لا يتحرك لئلا يحس به فيجهز عليه؛ ومن ذلك قول الشاعر: وكنت امرأ أرمي الزوائل مرة، ... فأصبحت قد ودعت رمي الزوائل وعطلت قوس الجهل عن شرعاتها، ... وعادت سهامي بين رث وناصل وهذا رجل كان يختل النساء في شبيبته بحسنه، فلما شاب وأسن لم تصب إليه امرأة، والشرعات: الأوتار، واحدتها شرعة؛ وفي قصيد كعب: في فتية من قريش قال قائلهم، ... ببطن مكة لما أسلموا: زولوا أي انتقلوا عن مكة مهاجرين إلى المدينة. ويقال: فلان يرمي الزوائل إذا كان طبا بإصباء النساء إليه. والزوائل: الصيد. وازدال: رمى الزوائل. والزوائل: النساء على التشبيه بالوحش؛ قال: فأصبحت قد ودعت رمي الزوائل وزالت الخيل بركبانها زيالا: نهضت؛ قال النابغة: كأن رحلي، وقد زال النهار بنا ... يوم الحليل، على مستأنس وحد «1» . وقيل: معناه ذهب وتمطى؛ وقيل برح كقوله: عهدي بهم يوم باب القريتين، وقد ... زال الهماليج بالفرسان واللجم وزال الظل زوالا كزوال الشمس، غير أنهم لم يقولوا زوولا كما قالوا في ال …

  • Lane · 1876English, synthesising the classical dictionaries.

    E. W. Lane (d. 1876), An Arabic-English Lexicon. English, synthesising the classical dictionaries.

    زَالَهُ

    1. زَالَهُ is syn. with أَزَالَهُ, q. v. (S, Msb, K.) زال زَوَالَهُ, or زال ٱللّٰهُ زَوَالَهُ; and زال زَوَالَهَا: see زَوَالٌ, in art. زول. And زِيلَ زَوِيلُهُ and زَوِيلُهَا and زَوَالُهُ: see زَوِيلٌ, in art. زول; and for the first, see also زَوَالٌ, in that art. زِلْتُهُ, (S, K,) aor. أَزِيلُهُ, inf. n. زَيْلٌ, (S,) [first pers. of زَالَهُ,] signifies also I put it, or set it, apart, away, or aside; removed it; or separated it; (S, K, TA;) namely, a thing, (S, TA,) from another thing: (TA:) and ازالهُ also signifies he separated it; like زَالَهُ. (TA.) See also 4. One says, زِلْ ضَأْنَكَ مِنْ مِعْزَاكَ Remove, or separate, thy sheep from thy goats. (S, * TA.) And زِلْتُهُ فَلَمْ يَنْزَلْ I separated it [partly], but it did not become [wholly] separated. (S, K.) مَا زَالَ يَفْعَلُ كَذَا (S in art. زول, and Msb,) is like مَا بَرِحَ, both in its [original] measure, [which is مَا زَيِلَ accord. to most authorities,] and in its meaning, which is [He ceased not to do such a thing, or he continued to do such a thing, for it denotes] the continuing to do a thing [as in the ex. above], and a constant state [as in the phrase مَا زَالَ زَيْدٌ قَائِمًا Zeyd ceased not to be, or continued to be, standing]: (Msb:) [using the first pers.,] one says, مَا زِلْتُ أَفْعَلُهُ [and مَا زَلْتُ, as appears from what follows], meaning مَا بَرِحْتُ [i. e. I ceased not to do it, or I continued to do it], (K,) aor. أَزَالُ [supposing the measure of the pret. to be originally فَعِلْتُ] (Msb, K) and أَزِيلُ [supposing the measure of the pret. to be originally فعَلْتُ]: (K:) the verb is seldom [in the Msb “ never ”] used without a negative particle: (Az, TA:) one says زِلْتُ أَفْعَلُ meaning مَا زِلْتُ أَفْعَلُ; but this is rare: (K:) and مَا زِيلَ يَفْعَلُ كَذَا, (S, Msb, K,) a phrase used by some of the Arabs, (Msb,) mentioned by Akh, (S, TA,) as is meant in [some of the copies of] the K by the addition عَنْهُ, though Akh is not mentioned in what precedes. (TA.) The verb in مَا زَالَ and لَا يَزَالُ is used in the manner of كَانَ in governing the noun [which is its subject] in the nom. case and the predicate in the accus. case [as in مَا زَالَ زَيْدٌ قَائِمًا, expl. above]; but one may not say, مَا زَالَ زَيْدٌ إِلَّا مُنْطَلِقًا, like as one says, مَا كَانَ زَيْدٌ إِلَّا مُنْطَلِقًا; for زَالَ denotes a negation, [meaning he did not a thing, or he was not doing &c.,] and مَا and لَا denote negation, and two negations together denote an affirmation; so that ما زال is affirmative like كَانَ; and as one may not say, كَانَ زَيْدٌ إِلَّا مَنْطَلِقًا, so one may not say, مَا زَالَ زَيْدٌ إِلَّا مُنْطَلِقًا. (Er-Rághib, TA.) One says also, مَا زِلْتُ بِزَيْدٍ حَتَّى فَعَلَ ذٰلِكَ and مَا زِلْتُ وَزَيْدًا [I desisted not with Zeyd until he did that], (Sb, K, * TA,) inf. n. زِيَالٌ. (Sb, TA.) لَمْ يَزَلْ [He, or it, has not ceased to be &c., i. e., has ever been &c., (see أَزَلٌ,)] is said of God, as meaning He has never been nonexistent; and لَا يَزَالُ, said of Him, He will never be nonexistent. (Kull p. 31.) This [incomplete i. e. non-attributive] verb and the complete [i. e. attributive, which signifies “ it ceased to be ” or “ exist, ” &c.,] differ in their components; the latter being composed of ل و ز; and this, of ل ى ز: or the incomplete is altered from the complete; being made to be with kesr to its medial radical letter, [for it is generally held to be from زَيِلَ or زَوِلَ,] after its having been [originally زَوَلَ,] with fet-h: or it is from زَالَهُ, aor. يَزِيلُهُ, meaning “ he put it, ” or “ set it, apart, ” &c. (K.)

    زيّلهُ

    2. زيّلهُ, (S, K,) inf. n. تَزْيِيلٌ, (S,) He separated it [i. e. acompany of men, or an assemblage of things,] much (Fr, Az, S, * K, * TA,) [or greatly, or widely; or dispersed it;] differing in degree from زَالَهُ like as مَيَّزَهُ does from مَازَهُ. (TA.) Hence, فَزَيَّلْنَا بَيْنَهُمْ [And we will separate them widely, one from another], (Fr, Az, S, K, TA,) in the Kur [x. 29]; (Fr, Az, S, TA;) where some read بَيْنَهُمْ فَزَايَلْنَا; like لَا تُصَعِّرْ and لا تُصَاعِرْ [in the Kur xxxi. 17]. (Fr, Az, TA.) [See also an ex. in a verse cited voce دُونَ.] زَيَّلْتُ is of the measure فَعَّلْتُ because its inf. n. is as above; for were it فَيْعَلْتُ, one would say زَيَّلَةٌ [of the measure فَيْعَلَةٌ]. (S.) تَزْيِيلٌ is also [said to be] an [irreg.] inf. n. of 5, q. v. (Lh, K.)

    زايلهُ

    3. زايلهُ, (S, Msb, K,) inf. n. مُزَايَلَةٌ and زِيَالٌ, (S, K,) He separated himself from him. (S, Msb, K. [See also 1 in art. زول, last signification.]) One says, خَالِطُوا النَّاسَ وَزَايِلُوهُمْ, meaning [Mix ye with men in familiar, or social, intercourse, and] separate yourselves from them in deeds, or actions. (TA.) زَايَلَتْهُ بِوَجْهِهَا She veiled her face from him. (IAar on the authority of Ibn-Ez-Zubeyr, TA in art. بزر.) [See also 6.] زَايَلْنَا بَيْنَهُمْ: see 2. And see also what next follows.

    ازالهُ

    4. ازالهُ (S, Msb, K) مِنْ مَكَانِهِ (S) or عَنْ مَكَانِهِ, (K,) inf. n. إِزَالَةٌ (K) and إِزَالٌ; (Lh, K;) and زَالَهُ, (S, Msb, K, and Har p. 393,) aor. يَزِيلُهُ, (S, K, and Har ubi suprà,) or يَزَالُهُ, like يَنَالُهُ, (Msb,) inf. n. زَيْلٌ, (S, K, Har,) or زِيَالٌ; (Msb;) both signify the same; (S, Msb, K;) He removed it [from its place; as the former is expl. in art. زول]; (Msb in explanation of both, and Har ubi suprà in explanation of the latter;) and so زَايَلَهُ, of which the primary signification is that first assigned to it in the next preceding paragraph. (Har ubi suprà.) See also 1, fourth sentence. [And see 4 in art. زول.]

    تزيّلوا

    5. تزيّلوا, (S, * Msb, K,) inf. n. تَزَيُّلٌ and تَزْيِيلٌ, (K,) the latter [irreg., being properly inf. n. of 2,] of the dial. of El-Hijáz, mentioned by Lh; (TA;) and تزايلوا, inf. n. تَزَايُلٌ; (K;) i. q. تَفَرَّقُوا [i. e. They became separated much, or greatly, or widely; or became dispersed: or rather, the former verb, being quasi-pass. of 2, has this meaning; and the latter verb, as quasi-pass. of 3, means simply they became separated, one from another]: (S, K:) [for] التَّزَايُلُ signifies التَّبَايُنُ: (S, K:) تزيّلوا is syn. with تَمَيَّزُوا: thus in the Kur [xlviii. 25], where it is said, لَوْ تَزَيَّلُوا لَعَذَّبْنَا ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا [Had they been widely separated, one from another, we had assuredly punished those who disbelieved]: (Msb, * TA:) and some here read تَزَايَلُوا. (Bd.) [See also 7.]

    تَزَاْيَلَ

    6: see 5, in three places. [Hence,] التَّزَايُلُ signifies also الاِحْتِشَامُ; (K, TA;) a tropical meaning: (TA:) one says, تزايل عَنْهُ, meaning اِحْتَشَمَهُ [i. e. (tropical:) He was, or became, abashed at him]: (O, TA:) because the مُحْتَشِم separates himself, and shrinks, from another. (TA.) [See also مُتَزَايِلَةٌ, whence it seems that one says, of a woman, تَزَايَلَتْ, meaning She veiled her face from men: see likewise 3.]

    انزال

    7. انزال It was, or became, put, or set, apart, away, or aside; removed; or separated; (S, K;) عَنْهُ [from him, or it]. (TA.) One says, زِلْتُهُ فَلَمْ يَنْزَلْ: see 1. (S, K.) [See also 5. And see 7 in art. زول.]

    زَيَلٌ

    زَيَلٌ Width between the thighs; (S, K;) like فَجَجٌ. (S.)

    أَزْيَلٌ

    أَزْيَلٌ, (K,) or أَزْيَلُ الفَخِذَيْنِ, occurring in a trad., (TA,) Having the thighs wide apart. (K, TA.)

    مِزْيَلٌ

    مِزْيَلٌ A man acute or sharp or quick in intellect, clever, ingenious, skilful, knowing, or intelligent; knowing with respect to the subtilties, niceties, abstrusities, or obscurities, of things, affairs, or cases; as also مِزْيَالٌ: (K:) or vehement in altercation, or litigation, who shifts (يَزُولُ) from one plea, or argument, to another: occurring in a trad., in which it is said, with reference to two claimants, كَانَ أَحَدُهُمَا مِخْلَطًا مِزْيَلًا [One of them two was a person who mixed in, or entered into, affairs; vehement in altercation, &c.]: (IAth, TA:) accord. to which latter explanation, it should be mentioned in art. زول, as it is by the author of the L; but Z mentions it in the present art., like F. (TA.)

    مِزْيَالٌ

    مِزْيَالٌ: see the next preceding paragraph.

    الجيب المُزَايِلُ

    الجيب المُزَايِلُ [a mistranscription for الحَبِيبُ] means البَائِنُ [i. e. The beloved, or the friend, who is in a state of separation, or disunion]. (TA.)

    Lane, Arabic-English Lexiconread Lane's entry online ↗

The same three letters in all six orders. Choose one.

ز ي ل

الزاي والياء واللام ليس أصلا لكن الياء فيه مبدلة من واو وقد مضى ذكره وذكرت هنالك كلمات اللفظ فالتزايل التباين

z-y-l is not a root, but the yā' in it is substituted from a wāw, and this has already been mentioned, and I mentioned there the words of this expression. So al-tazāyul is al-tabāyun (divergence).

Ibn Fāris ↗Lisān ↗Lane ↗al-Khalīl: used ↗Quran ×10

an entry in Ibn Fārislater sources onlyin none of them

Do these six share one core meaning?

About thisal-Khalīl, Ibn Jinnī, Ibn Fāris; the counts across the dictionary

al-Khalīl (d. c. 170/786), Kitāb al-ʿAyn, as transmitted by al-Layth: a two-letter word “turns in two ways”, a three-letter word “in six ways” (masdūsa), four letters in 24, five in 120; “its used forms are written down and its unused ones dropped” (line 975 ↗). The dictionary is built on this: each chapter takes a set of letters and names which orders are used (mustaʿmal) and which unused (muhmal). The ring shows that verdict, from the chapter heading as edited (documented in the text; how much of the book is al-Khalīl's own is disputed).

A reported total. al-Suyūṭī transmits, from Ḥamza al-Iṣfahānī, that al-Khalīl put the possible forms, used and unused, of two to five letters at 12,305,412 (al-Muzhir, line 1347 ↗). It is reported, not found in the ʿAyn. It equals exactly the arrangements of 2 to 5 different letters out of 28 (756 + 19,656 + 491,400 + 11,793,600); the breakdown printed beside it is corrupt, and al-Zubaydī's count, given next, differs (6,659,400).

Ibn Jinnī (d. 392/1002), al-Khaṣāʾiṣ, names the greater derivation (al-ishtiqāq al-akbar): bind a three-letter root and its six orders to one meaning, and bring stray members back “by the subtlety of the craft and interpretation” (line 7536 ↗). He says himself that it does not hold for every root (line 167 ↗; line 7603 ↗).

Ibn Fāris (d. 395/1004) gives each root its own aṣl and treats a rearranged word as maqlūb, “turned round”, and so not a root of its own: “j-b-dh is not a root, because it is a single word, turned round” (Maqāyīs, line 6147 ↗). The ring sets his aṣl for each order side by side; whether they meet is the question.

Neighbours on the ring differ by one swap of two letters.

The critique. A source quoted by al-Suyūṭī calls the greater derivation Ibn Jinnī's innovation, “not relied on in the language” (al-Muzhir, line 6159 ↗).

The other axis. The root's letters also go into patterns that keep their order and change the frame: the patterns (awzān) and the verb Forms I–X.

Across Ibn Fāris's dictionary. Of the 2,300 possible sets of three different sound letters (no hamza, w or y), 1,021 have at least one order as an entry. How many of their six orders are entries:

Ibn Fāris, entries found (1,021 letter-sets)
  1. 1 of 6319
  2. 2 of 6218
  3. 3 of 6164
  4. 4 of 6155
  5. 5 of 6107
  6. 6 of 658
al-Khalīl, orders his headings call used (746 letter-sets)
  1. 1 of 6148
  2. 2 of 6108
  3. 3 of 6157
  4. 4 of 6179
  5. 5 of 6111
  6. 6 of 643

Of the orders al-Khalīl calls used, 2,097 are entries in Ibn Fāris and 267 are not; 17 that he calls unused are entries in Ibn Fāris.

Our computation from the OpenITI texts; heading detection can miss entries

Attested here means found in our digital texts (Ibn Fāris, Lisān al-ʿArab, Lane, the Quranic Arabic Corpus), with w and y kept apart and hamza spellings merged; it is our data, not a classical verdict. English beside the Arabic is AI translation. Sources and grades: docs/research/root-permutations.md.

How each letter is made, in brief, from Sībawayh's and Ibn Jinnī's own sentences (linked); their words are under Reference.

Sharing two of its three letters (computed; kinship of form, not of meaning)

16 more
How it is madeSībawayh and Ibn Jinnī · phonetics

English throughout: AI translation of the Arabic

ز

ومما بين طرف اللسان وفويق الثنايا مخرج الزاي، والسين، والصاد

From between the tip of the tongue and just above the front teeth is the place of the zāy, the sīn and the ṣād. Sībawayh, line 26560 ↗

ومما بين الثنايا وطرف اللسان، مخرج الصاد والزاي والسين

From between the front teeth and the tip of the tongue is the place of the ṣād, the zāy and the sīn. Ibn Jinnī, line 983 ↗

ي

ومن وسط اللسان بينه وبين وسط الحنك الأعلى مخرج الجيم والشين والياء

From the middle of the tongue, between it and the middle of the upper palate, is the place of the jīm, the shīn and the yāʾ. Sībawayh, line 26553 ↗

ومن وسط اللسان بينه وبين وسط الحنك الأعلى، مخرج الجيم والشين والياء

From the middle of the tongue, between it and the middle of the upper palate, is the place of the jīm, the shīn and the yāʾ. Ibn Jinnī, line 974 ↗

ل

ومن حافة اللسان من أدناها إلى منتهى طرف اللسان، من بينها وبين ما يليها من الحنك الأعلى، مما فويق الضاحك والناب والرباعية والثنية، مخرج اللام

From the edge of the tongue, from its nearest part to the end of its tip, between it and the upper palate next to it, just above the premolar, the canine, the lateral and the central incisor, is the place of the lām. Ibn Jinnī, lines 977–978 ↗

Sībawayh, al-Kitāb (ed. Hārūn) and Ibn Jinnī, Sirr ṣināʿat al-iʿrāb; OpenITI digital texts (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Full credits on each letter's page.

In the Breath of the All-MercifulIbn ʿArabī · metaphysics

English throughout: AI translation of the Arabic

ز

Level of existence: ما يظهر في ركن الهواء · what appears in the pillar (element) of air

Divine Name: الحي · the Living (al-Ḥayy)

Lunar mansion: الشولة · al-Shawla

Futūḥāt ch. 198, line 64951

Spheres of its simples (ch. 2): 7 line 2570 ↗

منها دون الألف فطبعها الحرارة واليبوسة

[Zāy and lām] of it, excluding alif: their nature is heat and dryness.

Ibn ʿArabī, al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, line 2577

ي

Level of existence: السماء الأولى · The First Heaven

Divine Name: الرب · The Lord (al-Rabb)

Lunar mansion: الخرتان · al-Kharatān

Futūḥāt ch. 198, line 64500

Spheres of its simples (ch. 2): 10 line 2573 ↗

المرتبة العشرية فحروفها حارة يابسة

The tenfold rank: its letters are hot and dry.

Ibn ʿArabī, al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, line 2582

ل

Level of existence: السماء الثالثة · the third heaven

Divine Name: القاهر · the Subduer (al-Qāhir)

Lunar mansion: العوا · al-ʿAwwā

Futūḥāt ch. 198, line 64654

Spheres of its simples (ch. 2): 7 line 2576 ↗

منها دون الألف فطبعها الحرارة واليبوسة

[Zāy and lām] of it, excluding alif: their nature is heat and dryness.

Ibn ʿArabī, al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, line 2577
Meaning by vowelal-Dabbāgh · a visionary claim about a primordial “Syriac”, not historical Syriac

English throughout: AI translation of the Arabic

ز

فهي اسم للشيء الذي إذا دخل على الشيء ضره، وقال مرة: اسم للشيء وما يتحرز منه.

It is a name for the thing that harms another thing when it enters upon it. On one occasion he said: a name for the thing and what one guards against.

فهي إشارة إلى القبيح الذي فيه ضرر كالكبائر.

It is an indication of the ugly thing that contains harm, such as the major sins.

فهي إشارة إلى القبيح الذي لا ضرر فيه كالصغائر والشبهات والنجاسة.

It is an indication of the ugly thing that contains no harm, such as minor sins, doubtful matters and ritual impurity.

al-Dabbāgh (d. 1132/1719), al-Ibrīz, ch. 2 §15, compiled by al-Lamaṭī

ي

فهي للنداء، وقد يؤكد بها.

It is for the vocative (calling), and it may be used for emphasis.

فهي إشارة إلى الشيء الذي لا يثبت كالبرق ونحوه.

It is an indication of the thing that does not remain fixed, like lightning and the like.

فهي إشارة إلى الشيء الذي يستحيا به أو يستحيا منه كالعورة.

It is an indication of the thing that causes shame, or of which one is ashamed, like the private parts.

al-Dabbāgh (d. 1132/1719), al-Ibrīz, ch. 2 §15, compiled by al-Lamaṭī

ل

فهي حصول المتكلم على شيء عظيم، وتكون إشارة إلى شيء عظيم.

It is the speaker's attaining of something great, and it serves as an indication of something great.

فهي إشارة إلى الشيء الذي لا نهاية له.

It is an indication of the thing that has no end.

فهي إشارة من المتكلم إلى وجود ذاته أو إلى ذاته.

It is an indication by the speaker of the existence of his self, or of his self.

al-Dabbāgh (d. 1132/1719), al-Ibrīz, ch. 2 §15, compiled by al-Lamaṭī
Two-letter nucleus6 roots in Ibn Fāris’s chapterز ي

Ibn Fāris groups his roots under two-letter chapters (“the X and the Y and what makes them three”). These are the roots of this root's chapter with the core sense he gives each. Setting them side by side is our juxtaposition; he does not himself draw a shared meaning. His chapter heading, line 13312 ↗

  • زيبالزاء والياء والباء أصل يدل على خفة ونشاط وما يشبه ذلك والأصل الخفة يقولون الأزيب النشاط ويقولون مر فلان وله أزيب إذا مر مرا سريعا ومن ذلك قولهم للأمرL13313
  • زيتالزاء والياء والتاء كلمة واحدة وهي الزيت معروف ويقال زته إذا دهنته بالزيت وهو مزيوتQ 7 · L13320
  • زيحالزاء والياء والحاء أصل واحد وهو زوال الشيء وتنحيهL13321
  • زيجالزاء والياء والجيم ليس بشيء على أنهم يسمون خيط البناء زيجا فما أدري أعربي هو أم لاL13323
  • زيدالزاء والياء والدال أصل يدل على الفضل يقولون زاد الشيء يزيد فهو زائد وهؤلاء قوم زيد على كذا أي يزيدونQ 61 · L13325
  • زينالزاء والياء والنون أصل صحيح يدل على حسن الشيء وتحسينه فالزين نقيض الشينQ 46 · L13346
In the sister scriptsHebrew ז י לSyriac ܙ ܝ ܠ
Arabicز ي ل
Hebrewז י ל
Syriacܙ ܝ ܠ
Ancient South Arabian (musnad)𐩸 𐩺 𐩡
Phoenician𐤆 𐤉 𐤋

Letter for letter, by the regular sound correspondences of the Semitic languages (Arabic keeps several sounds the others merged). This shows how the root would be spelled; whether a related word exists is a separate question, answered in the Semitic lens. Where an Arabic sibilant (s, sh) continues two older sounds, both spellings are shown.

  • Classical lexiconThe excerpts from al-Khalīl and al-Jawharī fall under z-w-l.well attested

    The lexicographers in chronological order, from al-Khalīl to Lane.

    The excerpts from al-Khalīl and al-Jawharī fall under z-w-l. Al-Khalīl gives zawl as a light, graceful youth, muzāwala as working at a thing, and zawāl as the passing of kingship and the sun's declining. Al-Jawharī adds zawl as 'a marvel', zawwāl as one who moves much but covers little ground, and zāʾila as anything that moves. Ibn Fāris denies z-y-l original status and keeps only tazāyul as separation, citing fa-zayyalnā baynahum (10:28). Ibn Manẓūr defines zawāl as going, change and fading away, and notes dialect forms such as mā zīla for mā zāla. Lane treats zāla-hu, imperfect yazīlu, as 'he put it apart, removed or separated it', a sense distinct from zāla yazūlu, 'it ceased or departed'.

    Draws on: al-Khalīl · al-Jawharī · Ibn Fāris · Ibn Manẓūr · Lane

  • Letters & soundZāy is one of the sibilant (ṣafīr) letters.speculative

    What the theorists of sound symbolism would say of these letters. Speculative by nature.

    Zāy is one of the sibilant (ṣafīr) letters. An imsās reading might hear in it a slipping or sliding away, but Ibn Jinnī offers no such reading of this root. In the data given, Ibn ʿArabī assigns yāʾ to the First Heaven. Al-Dabbāgh reads zāy as that which harms what it enters (or that against which one guards), yāʾ as calling or emphasis, and lām as reaching something great. None of these connects obviously to separation. Mainstream linguistics treats such correspondences as suggestive at most.

    Draws on: Ibn ʿArabī letter ranks · al-Dabbāgh · Ibn Jinnī imsās

    • Ibn Jinnī, al-Khaṣāʾiṣ (link not verified)
    • Aḥmad b. al-Mubārak, al-Ibrīz (sayings of al-Dabbāgh)
  • Root structureIbn Fāris's z-y chapter contains zyb (lightness and briskness), zyt (oil), zyḥ (the removal and withdrawal of a thing), zyj (doubtful, possibly non-Arabic), zyd (excess) and zyn (beauty).uncertain

    The two-letter nucleus (Ibn Fāris's own chapters) and the permutations of the letters (Ibn Jinnī).

    Ibn Fāris's z-y chapter contains zyb (lightness and briskness), zyt (oil), zyḥ (the removal and withdrawal of a thing), zyj (doubtful, possibly non-Arabic), zyd (excess) and zyn (beauty). Zyḥ sits close in meaning to zyl as removal and setting aside, and zyb's lightness recalls al-Khalīl's zawl, the light youth. Since Ibn Fāris derives zyl from z-w-l, these parallels across the z-y nucleus are juxtapositions only. None of the permutations is attested, so Ibn Jinnī's greater derivation has nothing to work on here.

    Draws on: Ibn Fāris chapter siblings · permutations

    • Ibn Fāris, Maqāyīs al-lugha, bāb al-zāy wa-l-yāʾ
  • Semitic kin & loanwordsNo confident cognate in Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Akkadian, Geʿez or South Arabian can be offered for z-y-l or for z-w-l in the sense of ceasing or separating.uncertain

    Cognates in the sister languages, and whether the word was borrowed.

    No confident cognate in Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Akkadian, Geʿez or South Arabian can be offered for z-y-l or for z-w-l in the sense of ceasing or separating. Hebrew zûl ('to lavish, pour out') and zālal ('to be worthless') look similar, but their link to the Arabic is unproven. The word is native Arabic.

    Draws on: no confident cognate

  • Quranic exegesisAt 10:28 (fa-zayyalnā baynahum) al-Ṭabarī reads zayyalnā as 'We separated and set apart' the associators from those they worshipped.plausible

    How the classical exegetes read the word in the Quran.

    At 10:28 (fa-zayyalnā baynahum) al-Ṭabarī reads zayyalnā as 'We separated and set apart' the associators from those they worshipped. Al-Zamakhsharī derives the verb from zāla yazīlu, 'to set apart', distinguishes it from zāla yazūlu, and takes the doubled form as intensive. At 48:25 (law tazayyalū) the exegetes read the verb as tamayyazū: had the believing men and women in Mecca been distinguished from the unbelievers, the unbelievers would have been punished. The remaining occurrences are negated continuatives, such as lā yazālūna yuqātilūnakum (2:217) and lā tazālu taṭṭaliʿu (5:13), in the sense 'they will not cease'. Grammarians connect this mā zāla, imperfect yazālu, with this root, and keep it apart from yazūlu.

    Draws on: al-Ṭabarī · al-Zamakhsharī

  • Akbarian readingIn the chapter the negated continuative marks permanence.plausible

    The word in Ibn ʿArabī's text and terminology.

    In the chapter the negated continuative marks permanence. The theophany that the shaped form is readied to receive is 'perpetual, which never ceased and never ceases' (lam yazal wa-lā yazālu). The world 'does not cease' to be guarded while the Perfect Man is in it. By contrast, idhā zāla ('when he departs') carries the z-w-l sense of leaving, and when he departs the worldly treasury is emptied of what God stored in it. No Iṣṭilāḥ definition is given for the root. The chapter's contrast between what never ceases and what departs fits his wider teaching on continuous self-disclosure (tajallī).

    Draws on: Fuṣūṣ, Faṣṣ Ādam

    • Ibn ʿArabī, Fuṣūṣ al-ḥikam, Faṣṣ Ādam
Neighbouring rootsThe roots that share letters with this one, as a map you can open out