Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon

Includes Hans Wehr and al-Mufradat — All in One Search

عِدْلٌ

Root: عدل

Full Definition

عِدْلٌ The like of a thing; as also عَدْلٌ ; syn. مِثْلٌ; and نَظِيرٌ [which signifies the same, or the equal]; and so عَدِيلٌ : or, accord. to Er-Rághib, عَدْلٌ and عِدْلٌ are nearly the same; but the former is used in relation to what is perceived mentally, as in the phrase of the Kur [v. 96], أَوْ عَدْلُ ذٰلِكَ صِيَامًا [mentioned voce عَدْلٌ]; and عِدْلٌ and عَدِيلٌ , in relation to what is perceived by the sense, as things weighed and things numbered and things measured: Ibn-'Ámir, however, read او عِدْلُ ذلك; and Ks and the people of El-Medeeneh, with fet-h [i. e. عَدْلُ]: or عِدْلُ الشَّىْءِ, with kesr, signifies the like of the thing in kind, or in quantity, or measure, or the like, or also in quantity, or measure, or the like, and IF says, in weight; and , with fet-h, its like, or what will stand in its stead, of a thing different in kind, whence the phrase of the Kur أَوْ عَدْلُ ذٰلِكَ صِيَامًا [mentioned above]; عَدْل being originally an Verbal.Noun: Akh says, العِدْلُ, with kesr, signifies المِثْلُ; and , with fet-h, is originally an Verbal.Noun, but is made a subst. to denote المِثْلُ in order to distinguish it from the عِدْل of goods or commodities [which will be expl. in what follows]: Fr says, العِدْلُ, with kesr, is the like (المِثْلُ), as in the saying عِنْدِى عِدْلُ غُلَامِكَ [I have the like of thy boy or young man] and عِدْلُ شَاتِكَ [the like of thy sheep or goat]; but you say , with nasb [i. e. fet-h] to the ع, when you mean the [equal in] value, of what is different in kind; though sometimes it is pronounced with kesr by some of the Arabs, app. by an error on their part: or some allow one's saying عِنْدِى عِدْلُ غُلَامِكَ as meaning I have the like of thy boy or young man, [and app. also,] and عَدْلُهُ with fet-h only as meaning his value: but Zj says that العَدْلُ and العِدْلُ both signify the like, whether it be of the same kind or of a different kind; and if one make a mistake, he should not say that some of the Arabs have erred: the pl. of عِدْلٌ, by common consent, is أَعْدَالٌ, and [that of عَدِيلٌ is] عُدَلَآءُ.
2 Also The half of a load, such as is on either of the two sides of the camel; or a burden [borne on one side of a beast, counterbalancing another on the other side, or] made equiponderant to another burden: pl. [of pauc.] أَعْدَالٌ and [of mult.] عُدُولٌ: and عَدِيلٌ signifies the equal of a person in weight and measure or size or the like in the [vehicle called] مَحْمِل: Sb says that it signifies a human being that is the equal of another [in weight]; distinguishing it from عِدْلٌ, which, he says, is applied only to goods, or commodities: [but] عَدِيلَتَانِ signifies two sacks (غِرَارَتَانِ); because each counter balances, or is equiponderant to, the other. Hence one says of the عُدُول of an evil judicial decision, مَا هُمْ عُدُولٌ وَلٰكِنْ عُدُولٌ [meaning They are not witnesses whose testimony is approvable, but equalized loads of merchandise]. And [hence also] one says, وَقَعَ المُصْطَرِعَانِ عِدْلَىْ بَعِيرٍ, meaning The two [men wrestling] fell together, neither of them having thrown down the other. (TA. [See also عِكْمٌ.])
Lane's Lexicon + Hans Wehr + Mufradat

Three dictionaries. One search.

"The product of over thirty years of unrelenting labor — to this day supreme in the field of Arabic lexicography."

47,000+ classical entries Root-based navigation Full text search Hyperlinked definitions
Try Now

Trusted by researchers at University of Michigan, Duke, Alberta & more