شيأIbn Fāris registers a single narrow sense — disfigurement; the common senses 'thing' and … (root shy)

Shayʾ (الشيء) is the singular of ashyāʾ (أشياء); the Arabs do not fully decline ashyāʾ, though it ought properly to be fully declinable (maṣrūf), since it follows the pattern of fayʾ (فيء) and afyāʾ (أفياء). There is disagreement about this among those ignorant of grammar. The original form of the word shayʾ was shayyiʾ (شيّئ), on the pattern of fayʿil (فيعل), but [the Arabs] agreed unanimously on lightening it, just as they agreed on lightening mayyit (ميّت) [to mayt]. Likewise they lightened sayyiʾa (السيئة), as the poet said: 'And God pardons the evil deeds (sayyiʾāt) and slips.' Since shayʾ was thus lightened, and it is a noun applied to human beings and other created things, it was pluralized on the pattern faʿlāʾ (فعلاء), and its plural was lightened just as its singular was lightened; they did not say ashyiʾāʾ, but rather ashyāʾ, the final long vowel (madda) being an addition, as it is added in afʿilāʾ. Thus it became non-declinable because of the entry of this madda at its end, like the madda in ḥamrāʾ (حمراء), asʿadāʾ (أسعداء), and ʿajāsāʾ (عجاساء). Any noun whose ending is an added madda reverts to [treatment as] feminine, and hence is not fully declinable whether definite or indefinite; this madda serves as a substitute for the feminine marker, just as the yāʾ [in ḥublā] serves as a substitute marker, diverging from its normal course. Some have said, regarding ashyāʾ: when the Arabs differed concerning the plural of shayʾ, some said ashyiʾāʾ, some said ashāwāt, and some said ashāwā; and since it did not come on the pattern of fayʾ/afyāʾ and the like, but came in varying forms, it became known that it had been transformed from its regular pattern, and for that reason it was left non-declinable. Do you not see that when they said ashāwā and ashāwāt, it became clear that there had originally been a wāw in shayʾ (with the yāʾ assimilated into it), which was then lightened, just as they lightened the yāʾ of mayyita and mayyit? [Al-Khalīl said: ashyāʾ is a collective noun; its origin was as though faʿlāʾ from shayʾāʾ; the two hamzas became too heavy, so the first hamza was transposed to the beginning of the word, making it lafʿāʾ, just as they transposed anwuq (أنوق) to say aynuq (أينق), and transposed quwūs (قووس) to say qisī (قسي).] And al-mashīʾa (المشيئة) is the verbal noun (maṣdar) of shāʾa yashāʾu (شاء يشاء).

Shayʾ (الشئ): its diminutive is shuyayʾ (شييء), and also shīʾiʾ (with the shīn bearing kasra or ḍamma); do not say shawʾ (شوء). Its plural is ashyāʾ (أشياء), non-declinable. Al-Khalīl said: it was left non-declinable because its origin is faʿlāʾ, a plural formed on a pattern not derived from its singular, just as shuʿarāʾ (شعراء) is a plural formed on a pattern not derived from its singular, since fāʿil (فاعل) is not pluralized on the pattern faʿlāʾ. Then [the Arabs] found the two hamzas at the end too heavy, so they transposed the first one to the beginning of the word, saying ashyāʾ, just as they said ʿuqāb banʿanāqa (عقاب بعنقاة), aynuq (أينق), and qisī (قسي); thus its underlying pattern became lafʿāʾ. Evidence for the correctness of this is that it is non-declinable, that its diminutive is ushayyāʾ, and that it is pluralized as ashāwā. Its origin was ashāʾiy; the hamza was changed to yāʾ, so three yāʾs came together; the middle one was dropped, and the last changed to alif; then the remaining first one was changed to wāw, just as they said atawtuhu atwatan [instead of atyatan]. Al-Aṣmaʿī related that he heard a man of the most eloquent Arabs say to Khalaf al-Aḥmar: 'You indeed have ashāwā, on the pattern of ṣaḥārā (الصحارى).' It is also pluralized as ashāyā and ashyāwāt. Al-Akhfash said it is on the pattern afʿilāʾ, and for this reason it is non-declinable, since its origin is ashyiʾāʾ, from which the hamza between the yāʾ and the alif was dropped for lightening. Al-Māzinī said to him: 'How do the Arabs form the diminutive of ashyāʾ?' He replied: 'Ushayyāʾ.' [Al-Māzinī] said: 'You have abandoned your own position, because every broken plural formed on a pattern not derived from its singular — being one of the patterns of plural — is, in the diminutive, returned to its singular,' just as they said shuwayʿirūn (شويعرون) as the diminutive of shuʿarāʾ, and for non-rational referents by adding alif and tāʾ, so it ought to have been said shuyayʾāt. This objection does not apply to al-Khalīl's position, because faʿlāʾ is not one of the patterns of broken plural. Al-Kisāʾī said: ashyāʾ is on the pattern afʿāl, like farkh (فرخ) and afrākh (أفراخ), and it was left non-declinable only because of frequency of use, being likened to faʿlāʾ; but this entails that abnāʾ (أبناء) and asmāʾ (أسماء) should [also] be non-declinable. Al-Farrāʾ said: the origin of shayʾ was shayyiʾ, on the pattern shayyiʿ, pluralized as afʿilāʾ, like hayyin (هين) → ahyināʾ (أهيناء), and layyin (لين) → alyināʾ (أليناء); then it was lightened, giving shayʾ, just as they said hayn and layn. And they said ashyāʾ, dropping the first hamza. This position entails that it should not be pluralized as ashāwā [which it is]. And al-mashīʾa (المشيئة) means al-irāda (الإرادة, 'the will'); one says shiʾtu ash-shayʾa ashāʾuhu (شئت الشيء أشاؤه). Their saying kullu shayʾin bi-shīʾati Llāhi (كل شئ بشيئة الله), with kasra on the shīn, like shīʿa (شيعة), means 'by the will (mashīʾa) of God, exalted is He.' Al-Aṣmaʿī: shayyaʾtu ar-rajula ʿalā al-amri (شيأت الرجل على الأمر) means 'I urged him to do the thing.' Ashāʾahu (أشاءه) is a dialectal variant of ajāʾahu (أجاءه), meaning 'he compelled him.' And [the tribe of] Tamīm say: 'the worst of what compels you (yushīʾuka) to...' [entry continues]

The letters shīn, yāʾ, and hamza form a single word (root). One says shayyaʾa Allāhu wajhahu (شيأ الله وجهه), meaning 'may God make his face ugly,' when invoking ugliness upon someone. A face [so described] is called mushayyaʾ (مشيأ). He cited as evidence: 'Indeed the Banū Fazāra ibn Dhubyān … their she-camel came by night bringing a person … disfigured (mushayyaʾ) — how wondrous is the creation of the Merciful! …'

Shayʾ (الشيء, 'thing') — it is said to be that which can be known and reported about. According to many theologians (mutakallimūn), it is a term of shared meaning, since it is used both of God and of other than Him, and applies to what exists and what does not exist. According to some, shayʾ denotes only what exists; its origin is [as] the verbal noun of shāʾa (شاء, 'he willed'). When applied to God, exalted is He, it means 'that which He wills'; when applied to something else, it means 'that which is willed' (al-mashīʾ). In accordance with the second sense is His saying, exalted is He: 'Say: God is the Creator of every thing (kulli shayʾin)' (Qurʾān, al-Raʿd 13:16) — this is general, without exception, since shayʾ here is a maṣdar in the sense of the passive participle. And His saying: 'Say: what thing (ayyu shayʾin) is greatest in testimony?' (Qurʾān, al-Anʿām 6:19) is in the sense of the active participle, like His saying: 'Blessed is God, the best of creators' (Qurʾān, al-Muʾminūn 23:14). Al-mashīʾa (المشيئة, 'the will'), according to most theologians, is equivalent to al-irāda (الإرادة, 'wish/intention'). According to others, al-mashīʾa originally means bringing a thing into existence and attaining it, though it may be used conventionally in place of al-irāda; thus mashīʾa from God means bringing into existence, while from human beings it means attainment. It is said: mashīʾa from God necessitates the existence of the thing willed; hence it is said, 'Whatever God wills (mā shāʾa Allāhu) comes to be, and whatever He does not will does not come to be.' Whereas irāda from Him does not necessarily entail the existence of the thing intended — do you not see that He says: 'God intends (yurīdu) ease for you, and does not intend hardship for you' (Qurʾān, al-Baqara 2:185), and 'God does not intend (yurīdu) injustice for [His] servants' (Qurʾān, Ghāfir 40:31), and yet hardship and mutual injustice do occur among people? They said: one difference between the two is that a human being's irāda may occur without being preceded by God's irāda — for a human being may will not to die, yet God refuses that — whereas his mashīʾa can only occur after God's mashīʾa, as in His saying: 'And you will not will (wa mā tashāʾūna) except that God wills (illā an yashāʾa Allāh)' (Qurʾān, al-Insān 76:30). It is related that when the verse 'for whoever among you wills (shāʾa) to walk straight' (Qurʾān, al-Takwīr 81:28) was revealed, the disbelievers said: 'The matter is up to us — if we will, we walk straight, and if we will, we do not.' So God, exalted is He, revealed: 'And you will not will except that God wills' (al-Insān 76:30). Some have said: were it not that all matters are contingent upon the mashīʾa of God, exalted is He, and that our actions are dependent upon and contingent upon it, people would not have agreed on attaching the exceptive clause (istithnāʾ) to it in all their statements about their own actions, such as: 'You will find me, if God wills (in shāʾa Allāh), among the patient' (Qurʾān, al-Ṣāffāt 37:102); 'You will find me, if God wills, patient' (Qurʾān, al-Kahf 18:69); 'God will bring it to you if He wills (in shāʾa)' (Qurʾān, Hūd 11:33); 'Enter Egypt, if God wills (in shāʾa Allāh)' (Qurʾān, Yūsuf 12:69); 'Say: I have no power over benefit or harm for myself, except what God wills (mā shāʾa Allāh)' (Qurʾān, al-Aʿrāf 7:188); and 'It is not for us to return to it, unless God, our Lord, wills (an yashāʾa Allāhu Rabbunā)' (Qurʾān, al-Aʿrāf) [entry continues]

Al-mashīʾa (المشيئة): al-irāda ('the will'). One says shiʾtu ash-shayʾa ashāʾuhu (شئت الشيء أشاؤه) — [verbal nouns:] shayʾan, mashīʾatan, mashāʾatan, and mashāyatan — meaning 'I wanted it'; the noun [of instance] is ash-shīʾa (الشِّيئة), according to al-Liḥyānī. Al-Tahdhīb: al-mashīʾa is the maṣdar of shāʾa yashāʾu mashīʾatan. They said: kullu shayʾin bi-shīʾati Llāhi (كل شيء بشيئة الله), with kasra on the shīn, like shīʿa (شيعة), meaning 'by His will.' In the ḥadīth: a Jew came to the Prophet, God bless him and grant him peace, and said: 'You make vows and associate partners [in speech], saying: mā shāʾa Allāhu wa shiʾta [what God has willed and you have willed].' So the Prophet, God bless him and grant him peace, commanded them to say instead: mā shāʾa Allāhu thumma shiʾta [what God has willed, then you have willed]. Al-mashīʾa, with hamza, means al-irāda. One says shiʾtu ash-shayʾa ashāʾuhu. The distinction between saying 'mā shāʾa Allāhu wa shiʾta' and 'mā shāʾa Allāhu thumma shiʾta' is that wa (و) indicates joining without sequence, whereas thumma (ثم) indicates both joining and sequence; so with wa, one would be placing God and oneself together as equals in the will, whereas with thumma, one places God's will before one's own. Ash-shayʾ (الشيء): [something] known. Sībawayhi said, when he wanted to make the masculine the base form for the feminine: 'Do you not see that shayʾ is masculine, and it applies to everything that is spoken of?' As for what Sībawayhi also related of the Arabs' saying mā aghfalahu ʿanka shayʾan (ما أغفله عنك شيئا), he explained it to mean 'dispel doubt from yourself' — but this is not convincing. Ibn Jinnī said: shayʾan here cannot be accusative as a maṣdar, as though one said 'ghufūlan' or the like, because the verb of wonder already contains within itself the sense of intensification and does not need to be reinforced by a maṣdar. He said: as for their saying huwa aḥsanu minka shayʾan (هو أحسن منك شيئا), shayʾan here is accusative on the understood basis of bi-shayʾin; when the preposition was dropped, what preceded it was connected directly to it, since the meaning of huwa afʿalu minhu in intensification is like the meaning of mā afʿalahu — and just as one cannot say mā aqwamahu qiyāman, one likewise cannot say huwa aqwamu minhu qiyāman. The plural is ashyāʾ (أشياء), non-declinable, and also ashyāwāt (أشياوات), ashāwāt (أشاوات), ashāyā (أشايا), and ashāwā (أشاوى), on the pattern of jabaytu al-kharāja jibāwatan. Al-Liḥyānī said: some say, for its plural, ashyāyā and ashāwih; and it is related that an old man recited to him in the gathering of al-Kisāʾī, from some Bedouin: 'That is what I bequeath to you, O Umm Muʿammar, / and some counsels, among the ashāwih (أشاوه), are of benefit.' He said the old man claimed that the Bedouin said, 'I mean ashāyā' — and this is among the most irregular of plurals, since there is no hāʾ in ashyāʾ that could appear in ashāwih. Ashyāʾ is on the pattern lafʿāʾ according to al-Khalīl and Sībawayhi, and on the pattern afʿilāʾ according to Abū al-Ḥasan al-Akhfash. In the noble revelation: 'O you who believe, do not ask about things (ashyāʾ) which, if disclosed to you, would trouble you' (Qurʾān, al-Māʾida 5:101). Abū Manṣūr said: the grammarians did not differ concerning the fact that ashyāʾ is the plural of shayʾ, and that it is not fully declinable. He said: but they differed [entry continues]