Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon

عَجِبَ

Root: عجب

Form: 1

Full Definition

عَجِبَI , [and لَهُ, as shown by what follows,] Present.T ـَ Verbal.Noun عَجَبٌ; and تعجّب منه, and منه, which two are syn. each with the other, and with the first also; all signify He wondered at it; i. e. he deemed it strange, extraordinary, or improbable, said of a thing occurring, or presenting itself, to him; on account of his being little accustomed to it: or the first signifies [as above, i. e.] he deemed it strange, extraordinary, or improbable: and is of two kinds; one is [the wondering] at a thing which one commends, and it means the accounting good or goodly, or approving [it], and expressing one's approval of a thing; and the other is at a thing that one dislikes, and it means the deeming [a thing] strange, extraordinary, or improbable, and discommending [it]: or, accord. to some of the grammarians, it signifies the mind's becoming affected, or acted upon, by some excessive quality in the thing by which it is so affected; [so that it may be rendered the becoming affected with wonder;] as when one says مَا أَشْجَعَهُ [“ how courageous is he! ”] and أَسْمِعْ بِهِمْ وَأَبْصِرْ [“ how clearly shall they hear! and how clearly shall they see! ”]: or it is [the wondering] at a thing of which the cause, or reason, is hidden, and not known: or it is when one sees a thing that pleases him, and thinks that he has not seen the like of it: [therefore تَعَجَّبَ مِنْهُ may be rendered he wondered at it, and he admired it:] accord. to some, it peculiarly relates to what is deemed good or goodly, or approved; [though this is inconsistent with the application of the grammatical term فِعْلُ التَّعَجُّبِ the verb of wonder;] and the subst. derived from it is عَجْبٌ : and relates to what is good or goodly or approved, and to what is otherwise; and the subst. is عَجَبٌ [which is also the Verbal.Noun of عَجِبَ]: or accord. to the A and L, signifies he wondered at a thing intensely; or became affected with intense wonder.
2 [عَجَبًا لِهٰذَا, a phrase of common occurrence, (mentioned in the K voce وَيْبٌ, &c.,) is for أَعْجَبُ عَجَبًا لِهٰذَا I wonder greatly, lit. with wondering, at this. See also an ex. voce عَجَبٌ, last sentence but two.]
3 Of the words in the Kur xxxvii. 12, there are two readings, بَلْ عَجِبْتَ وَيَسْخَرُونَ and بل عَجِبْتُ ويسخرون: accord. to the former, the meaning is, Nay, thou wonderest at their conduct, or deemest it extraordinary, [O Mohammad,] and they mock: respecting the latter reading, [which may be rendered Nay, I wonder, &c.,] it is observed that عَجَبٌ when attributed to God has a meaning different from that which it has when attributed to men: IAth says that, when attributed to God, it is used in a tropical manner, as the causes of things are not hidden from Him: or, accord. to IAmb, the verb here meams I have recompensed them for their wondering at the truth, or their deeming it strange or improbable: and in like manner it is said [in the Kur viii. 30], يَمْكُرُونَ وَيَمْكُرُ ٱللّٰهُ [lit. “ They plot and God plotteth ”], meaning, “ God recompenseth them for their plotting. ”
4 It is also said that عَجَبٌ when attributed to God [sometimes] means The being well pleased, content, or satisfied. The saying, in a trad., عَجِبَ رَبُّكَ مِنْ قَوْمٍ يُقَادُونَ إِلَى الجَنَّة فِى السَّلَاسِلِ means Thy Lord wonders at a people who will be led to Paradise in chains [because of their deeming themselves unworthy thereof]; the verb عجب being here used in a tropical sense: or the meaning is, thy Lord is well pleased with, and will reward, a people &c.: and there are other trads. of the same kind.
5 عَجِبَ إِلَيْهِ means He loved, or liked, him, or it. [See a verse cited voce عَجِيبٌ; from which it seems to signify lit. He, or it, was an object of love to him.]

def.2 عَجِبَتْ, Verbal.Noun عَجَبٌ; and عَجُبَتْ; said of a she-camel, She was, or became, such as is termed عَجْبَآء


Lane's Lexicon — The most scholarly Arabic-English dictionary available

The product of over thirty years of unrelenting labor. A work of such unique greatness that to this day it remains supreme in the field of Arabic lexicography.

✓ Full text search • ✓ Root-based navigation
✓ Advanced filters • ✓ Mobile access

Sign in · 7-Day Free Trial

Trusted by 1000+ researchers worldwide
Featured on Fons Vitae • Used by universities globally