Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon

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نَفَشَ

Root: نفش

Form: 1

Full Definition

نَفَشَI , Present.T ـُ Verbal.Noun نَفْشٌ, He separated, or plucked asunder, or loosened, a thing, with his fingers, so that it became spread, or sparse, or dispersed; as also نفّش , Verbal.Noun تَنْفِيشٌ: or the latter has an intensive signification: and accord. to some, the former signifies he separated a thing not difficult to separate, such as cotton and wool: or he pulled wool until its parts became separated, or plucked asunder, or loosened: or he spread, or dispersed, a thing. You say, نَفَشْتُ القُطْنَ and الصُّوفَ [I separated or plucked asunder, or loosened, with my fingers, &c., the cotton and the wool]. نَفْشٌ is likewise syn. with نَدْفٌ [the separating and loosening cotton by means of a bow and a wooden mallet]. You also say, نَفَشَ الرَّطْبَةَ, Verbal.Noun as above, meaning, He separated what was collected together, or compacted, in the [kind of trefoil called] رطبة. And, of a cock, (T, S, in art. بول.) or of a حُبَارَى, when about to fight, نَفَشَ بُرَائِلَهُ [He ruffled the feathers around his neck].

def.2 It is also intrans syn. with انتفش, q. v.
2 [And hence,] نَفَشَتِ الغَنَمُ, and الإِبِلُ, accord. to IDrd the former only, but accord. to others the latter also, and in like manner one says of all beasts, though mostly of غَنَم, Present.T and ـِ Verbal.Noun نَفْشٌ, or نُفُوشٌ, or both: and نَفشت, Present.T ـَ; The sheep or goats, and the camels, pastured by night without a pastor: or without the knowledge of a pastor or dispersed themselves by night: or dispersed themselves and pastured by night without knowledge [of the pastor]: or the sheep or goats entered among seed-produce: occurring in the Kur, xxi. 78: the subst. is نَفَشٌ, signifying their dispersion of themselves and pasturing by night without a pastor.
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