زَبُونٌ

Full Definition

زَبُونٌ One who pushes, or thrusts, or who pushes, or thrusts, away, [or who pushes &c. much or vehemently, or who is wont to push &c.,] a thing. A she-camel that pushes, or thrusts, or that pushes, or thrusts, away, or that kicks, or strikes, and pushes, &c., her milker, with her hind leg [or with her stifle-joint: see 1]: or that is wont, or accustomed, to push, &c., her milker. Hence, one says حَرْبٌ زَبُونٌ meaning A difficult, or stubborn, war or battle; likened to the she-camel termed زبون: or that dashes men [one against another], and pushes, or thrusts, them: or in which one portion pushes, or thrusts, or pushes or thrusts away, another, by reason of multitudinousness: or it is thus called because it repels the valiant men from advancing, through fear of death.
2 As meaning غَبِىٌّ [i. e. Unintelligent, or having little intelligence], and حَرِيفٌ [syn. with مُعَامِلٌ, and hence, as will be seen from what follows, app. here used in the sense of a dealer with others in buying and selling, a meaning which مُعَامِلٌ often has, though, as I have shown in art. حَرف, I do not know any authority for assigning this meaning to حَرِيفٌ], (S, K, [the latter explanation thus written in my copies of the S and in my MS. copy of the K and in the CK, but in the TA, and hence in the TK, خريف, which has no meaning, that I know of, appropriate in this instance,]) it is post-classical, not of the language of the people of the desert: it signifies a simpleton, or fool, who is endamaged, or defrauded, (يُغْبَنُ,) much; by a tropical attribution [of the meaning of a pass. part. n. to a word which has properly the meaning of an act. part. n.; because the person thus termed is as though he were pushed, or thrust, away]: it signifies also a purchaser; because he pushes away another from the thing that is sold; [or because he is often duped;] and in this sense, [a sense in which it is commonly now used, or as meaning a customer, and also a dupe,] it is a post-classical word, not of the language of the people of the desert. [The pl. now commonly used is زَبَائِنُ, and some say زَبُونَاتٌ.] It is said in a post-classical prov., الزَّبُونُ يَفْرَحُ بِلَا شَىْءٍ [which I would render The dupe rejoices without anything, or at nothing]: or الزَّبُونُ يَفْرَحُ بِأَدْنَى شَىْءٍ, meaning [ The dupe rejoices at the least, or the meanest, thing: or] the dealer (المُعَامِلُ), or the purchaser (المُشْتَرِى), as the word signifies in the dial. the people of El-Basrah. “ Nous pensons que le mot الزبون, dans l'acception qu'il prend dans ce proverbe dérive du chaldéen זַבֵּן 'vendre.'” See also De Sacy's Chrest. Arabe, sec. ed., pp. 186 — 190.]

def.2 Also A well in which is a receding in its مَثَابَة [or place where the water collects, or place reached by the water when it returns and collects after one has drawn from it, &c.; (see art. ثوب;) as though its casing were pushed back in that part].

def.3 And [An inner vest; so in the present day; pl. أَزْبِنَةٌ;] a thing that is cut so as to fit the body, and worn.

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