طبعA pattern or limit at which a thing culminates and is thereby sealed. (root tb)

Al-ṭabaʿ (الطبع): heavy rust/filth on a sword. And a man, when he lacks effectiveness in noble affairs, is likened to a sword rusted (ṭubiʿa) when much rust gathers on it. He [the poet] said: 'White swords — we polish them when they rust (ṭubiʿat) — you would think them, upon the enemies, [bright] as linen (kattān).' That is, bright [swords] as though they were linen garments. He said: 'And when I brandish [the sword] I cut through every trial, and it emerged neither rust-dulled (ṭabiʿ) nor blunted (mabhūr).' And so-and-so is ṭabiʿ ṭamiʿ (طبع طمع) [base and greedy] when he is of vile character. Al-Mughīra ibn Ḥabnāʾ said, satirizing his brother Ṣakhr: 'And your mother, when mentioned, is a woman of truth, but her son is base and feeble (ṭabiʿ sakhīf).' And so-and-so is maṭbūʿ (مطبوع) upon an evil character, or upon a noble one. Al-ṭabbāʿ (الطباع) is one who takes [iron] and forges it (yaṭbaʿuhā), beating it or smoothing it, thus forging from it a sword, a knife, or the like. Ṭabaʿtu al-sayf ṭabʿan (طبعت السيف طبعا) [I forged the sword], and its craft is al-ṭibāʿa (الطباعة). And what is placed in a person of the natural dispositions (ṭibāʿ) regarding food, drink, and other things, among the aṭbiʿa (الأطبعة) upon which he is formed (ṭubiʿa). Al-ṭabīʿa (الطبيعة) is the noun equivalent to al-sajiyya and al-khalīqa and the like. Al-ṭabʿ (الطبع): the sealing (khatm) of a thing. Al-Ḥasan said: 'Between Allah and the servant there is a limit; when he reaches it, [his heart] is sealed (ṭubiʿa), and thereafter he is granted success toward good.' Al-ṭābiʿ (الطابع): the seal (khātam). Allah ṭabaʿa (طبع) the creation: He created them. And ṭabaʿa upon the hearts: He sealed them. Al-ṭabʿ (الطبع): the filling of a measuring vessel. Ṭabbaʿtuhu taṭbīʿan (طبعته تطبيعا), i.e., I filled it until nothing more could fit. And ṭabbaʿtu al-ināʾ taṭbīʿan (طبعت الإناء تطبيعا) [I filled the vessel]. And taṭabbaʿa al-nahr (تطبع النهر) until it overflows/gushes. And al-ṭabʿ: your filling of a waterskin until nothing more can fit due to how full it is; al-ṭabʿ is like al-milʾ (filling), and al-taṭbīʿ is a verbal noun like al-tamlīʾ, and one does not say for the [simple] verbal noun ṭabʿ, because its verb is not lightened as the verb malaʾtu is lightened — for you say ṭabaʿtuhu taṭbīʿan, not ṭabaʿtuhu ṭabʿan. And the saying of Labīd: 'like the water-carriers (rawāyā) of al-ṭibʿ, languishing in the mud' — here al-ṭibʿ is the water with which the water-carrier was filled. He means al-Rabīʿ ibn Ziyād and whoever contended with him before the king. He says: I burdened them and weighed down their shoulders with what they heard of my speech and argument, so they became like water-carriers laden and weighted with water, nearly stuck fast around it. And it is said: 'among his natural traits (ṭibāʿihi) is generosity, and among his natural traits is harshness.' Al-aṭbāʿ (الأطباع): places where water collects/sinks. And it is said: they are rivers, singular ṭibʿ (طبع). He said: 'Neither did the rivers (al-aṭbāʿ) turn him from me, nor the walls (al-judur).'

Al-ṭabʿ (الطبع): the natural disposition (sajiyya) upon which a person is formed; it is originally a verbal noun, and al-ṭabīʿa (الطبيعة) is like it, and likewise al-ṭibāʿ (الطباع). Al-ṭabʿ: the sealing (khatm), which is making an impression in clay and the like. Al-ṭābiʿ, with fatḥa: the seal (khātam). Al-ṭābiʿ, with kasra: a dialectal variant of it. Ṭabaʿtu ʿalā al-kitāb (طبعت على الكتاب), i.e., I sealed it. Ṭabaʿtu al-dirham wa-l-sayf (طبعت الدرهم والسيف), i.e., I worked/forged it. Ṭabaʿtu min al-ṭīn jarra (طبعت من الطين جرة) [I formed a jar from clay]. Al-ṭabbāʿ (الطباع): the one who makes such things. Al-ṭibʿ (الطبع), with kasra: the river, plural aṭbāʿ (أطباع), from al-Aṣmaʿī. And it is said: it is the proper name of a specific river. Labīd said: 'They turned back, their gait faltering, like the water-carriers of al-ṭibʿ, languishing in the mud.' Al-ṭabaʿ (الطبع), with [second-letter] fatḥa, means defilement (danas); from it one says ṭabiʿa al-rajulu (طبع الرجل), with kasra. And ṭabiʿa also means: he became lazy. And ṭabiʿa al-sayfu (طبع السيف): rust covered it. The rajaz poet said: 'When you say [the clouds are but] scattered wisps (ṭakhārīr al-qazaʿ), we make white swords with little rust (al-qalīlāt al-ṭabaʿ) face them.' And ṭabbaʿtu al-siqāʾ wa-ghayrahu taṭbīʿan (طبعت السقاء وغيره تطبيعا): I filled it, so it taṭabbaʿa (تطبع), i.e., became full. Nāqa muṭbiʿa (ناقة مطبعة): a she-camel weighed down by her load; the rajaz poet said: 'and where is the load of the loaded she-camel (al-nāqa al-muṭbiʿa)' — and it is also transmitted as 'al-jalanfaʿa.'

Ṭāʾ, bāʾ, and ʿayn form a sound root, which is like a pattern for an endpoint at which a thing terminates until it is sealed there. One says ṭabaʿtu ʿalā al-shayʾ ṭābaʿan (طبعت على الشيء طابعا) [I stamped the thing]. Then from this it is said ṭabʿ al-insān (طبع الإنسان) [a person's nature] and his sajiyya (disposition). And from this is [the phrase] Allah's sealing (ṭubiʿa) the heart of the disbeliever, as though it were sealed so that guidance and light cannot reach it, and he is not granted success toward good. From this too is ṭabʿ al-sayf wa-l-dirham (طبع السيف والدرهم) [forging the sword and coin], which is striking it until it is completed. Al-ṭābiʿ (الطابع) is the seal with which one seals, and al-ṭābiʿ is also the one who seals. From this chapter is their saying, for filling a measuring vessel: ṭabʿ (طبع), and the analogy is the same, since it has become complete and sealed. Taṭabbaʿa al-nahr (تطبع النهر) [the river filled up/overflowed] follows the same meaning. Likewise, if a she-camel carries her full, complete load, she is muṭbiʿa (مطبعة). He said: — 'Where are the two shaẓāẓ, and where is al-marbaʿa … and where is the load of the fully-laden she-camel (al-nāqa al-muṭbiʿa)?' — Ibn al-Sikkīt said: al-ṭibʿ (الطبع) is the river, plural al-ṭibāʿ (الطباع). He said: — 'They turned back, their gait faltering, like the water-carriers of al-ṭibʿ (الطبع), intent upon the mud.' — Perhaps what they said in describing the river is that it be full, so it would better fit the analogy. Among what deviates from this root — though it may possibly be brought close to it, albeit with some forcing — is their saying for filth: ṭabaʿ (طبع). One says rajulun ṭabiʿ (رجل طبع) [a base man]. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: 'Seek refuge in Allah from greed (ṭamaʿ) that leads to baseness (ṭabaʿ)' (استعيذوا بالله من طمع يهدى إلى طبع). And he said: — 'It has crowns of ruby, finely wrought by its maker — you see in it neither flaw nor baseness (ṭabaʿ).' — From this word also comes their saying of a man when he fails to accomplish a matter effectively: qad ṭabiʿa (قد طبع).

Al-ṭabʿ (الطبع): that you shape a thing into a particular form, like ṭabʿ al-sikka (طبع السكة) [striking of the die] and ṭabʿ al-darāhim (طبع الدراهم) [minting of coins]; it is more general than al-khatm (sealing) and more specific than al-naqsh (engraving). Al-ṭābiʿ and al-khātim: what is used to stamp and seal. And al-ṭābiʿ is the one who does that; and it is also said al-ṭābiʿ for the instrument itself, which is like naming the act after the instrument, as in 'sayf qāṭiʿ' [a cutting sword]. He, exalted, said: 'fa-ṭubiʿa ʿalā qulūbihim' [So a seal was set upon their hearts] (Q 63:3); likewise 'kadhālika yaṭbaʿu Allāhu ʿalā qulūb alladhīna lā yaʿlamūn' [Thus does Allah seal the hearts of those who do not know] (Q 30:59); 'kadhālika naṭbaʿu ʿalā qulūb al-muʿtadīn' [Thus We seal the hearts of the transgressors] (Q 10:74). And the discussion of His saying 'khatama Allāhu ʿalā qulūbihim' [Allah has set a seal upon their hearts] (Q 2:7) has already preceded. By this, al-ṭabʿ and al-ṭabīʿa — which is the natural character (sajiyya) — are to be understood, for that is [essentially] the imprinting of the soul with a certain form, whether from the aspect of innate creation (khilqa) or from the aspect of habituation (ʿāda); and it is more predominant with respect to what is imprinted by way of innate creation. For this reason it is said: [entry continues]

Al-ṭabʿ (الطبع) and al-ṭabīʿa (الطبيعة): the natural character (khalīqa) and disposition (sajiyya) upon which a person is formed. Al-ṭibāʿ (الطباع): like al-ṭabīʿa, feminine. Abū al-Qāsim al-Zajjājī said: al-ṭibāʿ is a single masculine [noun], like al-nuḥās and al-najjār. Al-Azharī said: a person's ṭabʿ is pluralized as ṭibāʿ, being what a person is formed upon of the natural traits of a person regarding his food and drink, and the ease or harshness, difficulty or facility, firmness or softness, stinginess or generosity, of his character. Al-ṭibāʿ: singular of a person's ṭibāʿ, on the pattern of fiʿāl like mithāl, a noun for a mold (qālib) and similarly for a model (ghirār). Ibn al-Aʿrābī said: al-ṭibāʿ is the model (mithāl). One says: 'iḍribhu ʿalā ṭibāʿi hādhā' [form/strike it upon the model of this], and 'ʿalā ghirārihi wa-ṣīghatihi wa-hidyatihi,' i.e., according to its measure. Al-Liḥyānī related: 'lahu ṭābiʿun ḥasanun' (له طابع حسن), with kasra of the bāʾ, i.e., a nature (ṭabīʿa); and he cited: 'He has a nature (ṭābiʿ) that governs him — and indeed it is only in the natures that men differ from one another.' Ṭabaʿahu Allāhu ʿalā al-amr yaṭbaʿuhu ṭabʿan (طبعه الله على الأمر يطبعه طبعا): He disposed him innately toward it (faṭarahu). And Allah ṭabaʿa the creation upon the natures (ṭabāʾiʿ) which He created, bringing them into being upon them — these being their innate characters (khalāʾiquhum) — yaṭbaʿuhum ṭabʿan: He created them. And that nature is his ṭabīʿa upon which he was formed (ṭubiʿa ʿalayhā), and ṭabaʿahā, and 'allatī ṭubiʿa' (التي طبع) — according to al-Liḥyānī, who added nothing further, meaning: that upon which its possessor was formed. In the ḥadīth: 'kullu al-khilāl yuṭbaʿu ʿalayhā al-muʾminu illā al-khiyānata wa-l-kadhib' [Every trait may the believer be disposed with, except treachery and lying], i.e., created upon. Al-ṭibāʿ: what is instilled in a person of all the character traits he can scarcely avoid engaging in, of good and evil. Al-ṭabʿ: the initiation of the making of a thing. You say: ṭabaʿtu al-labina ṭabʿan (طبعت اللبن طبعا) [I molded the brick], and ṭabaʿa al-dirham wa-l-sayf wa-ghayrahumā yaṭbaʿuhu ṭabʿan (طبع الدرهم والسيف وغيرهما يطبعه طبعا): he shaped/fashioned it (ṣāghahu). Al-ṭabbāʿ (الطباع): one who takes an elongated piece of iron and forges from it a sword, a knife, a spearhead (sinān), or the like; his craft is al-ṭibāʿa (الطباعة). And ṭabaʿtu min al-ṭīn jarratan (طبعت من الطين جرة): I made [it]; and al-ṭabbāʿ: the one who makes them. Al-ṭabʿ: the sealing (khatm), which is the making of an impression in clay and the like. In the rare sayings of the Arabs (nawādir al-aʿrāb): one says 'qadhadhtu qafā al-ghulām' when you strike him with the fingertips [on the nape]; but if you press the [whole] hand upon the nape, you say ṭabaʿtu qafāhu (طبعت قفاه). And ṭabaʿa al-shayʾa wa-ʿalayhi yaṭbaʿu ṭabʿan (طبع الشيء وعليه يطبع طبعا): he sealed it. Al-ṭābiʿ and al-ṭābiʿ, with fatḥa and kasra: the seal (khātam) with which one seals — the latter form from al-Liḥyānī and Abū Ḥanīfa. And al-ṭābiʿ/al-ṭābiʿ: the branding-mark for [reckoning] the obligatory alms (mīsam al-farāʾiḍ); one says ṭabaʿa al-shāt (طبع الشاة) [he branded the sheep]. And 'Allah ṭabaʿa upon his heart': sealed it, metaphorically. And it is said: 'ṭabaʿa Allāhu ʿalā qulūb al-kāfirīn' [Allah sealed the hearts of the disbelievers] — we seek refuge in Allah from that — meaning He sealed [them] so [the heart] retains nothing, and covered [them], and they are not granted success toward good. Abū Isḥāq al-Naḥwī said: the meaning of ṭabaʿa and khatama in language is one and the same — it is the covering-over of a thing and the securing of it against anything entering it, as Allah, exalted, said: 'am ʿalā qulūbin aqfāluhā' [Or are there locks upon [their] hearts?] (Q 47:24), and He, mighty and exalted, said: 'kallā bal rāna...' [Nay! Rather, a stain has covered...] (Q 83:14) [entry continues]