Classical Arabic - English Dictionary

سَفَا, (Ṣ, M,) aor. يَسْفُو, inf. n. سُفُوُّ, (Ṣ, TA,) like عُلُوُّ, (TA,) or سَفْوٌ, (so accord. to a copy of the M,) He was quick, or swift, in walking, or going, and in flying. (Ṣ, M.)

سَفَتِ الرِّيحُ التُّرابَ, (Ṣ, M, Mgh, Ḳ,) aor. تَسْفِى, (Ṣ, Ḳ,) inf. n. سَفْيٌ, (Ṣ, M,) The wind raised the dust, or made it to fly, and carried it away, or dispersed it; (Ṣ, Mgh, Ḳ;) and cast it: (Mgh:) or bore it, carried it, or carried it away; (M, Ḳ;) as alsoأَسْفَتْهُ↓, (Ḳ,) a dial. var. of weak authority, mentioned by Ṣgh on the authority of Fr; (TA;) [or it may be thus expl. by a mistake originating from the fact that] IAạr mentions سَفَتِ الرِّيحُ and أسْفَتْ, [as syn.,] but [in a sense to be expl. hereafter,] not making either of them trans.: (M:) [andسَافَتِ↓ الرِّيحُ التُّرَابَ occurs in the M and L in art. سنف:] and تَسْفِى بِهِ, relating to the wind and the dust, also occurs; the ب being redundant, or added because the verb implies the meaning of رَمَت [which is trans. by means of بِ]. (Mgh.)

And سَفَتِ الرِيحُ The wind blew; as alsoأسْفَت↓. (IAạr, TA.) And سَفَتْ عَلَيْهِ الرِيَاحُ [The winds blew upon him, or it]. (Z, TA.)

And سَفَى التُّرَابُ, aor. يَسْفِى, [The dust, or earth, poured down,] the verb being intrans. as well as trans. (Ḥam p. 454. [It is there indicated that the meaning is اِنْهَالَ.])

سَفِىَ: see سَفًا, below.

سَفِيَتْ يَدُهُ His hand became much cracked, or chapped, (Ḳ, TA,) in consequence of. work. (TA.)

And سَفِىَ, [aor. يَسْفَى,] inf. n. سَفًا and سَفَآءٌ, He was, or became, lightwitted; or unwise, witless, or destitute of wisdom or understanding; i. q. سَفِهَ, inf. n. سَفَهٌ and سَفَاهٌ; (M, Ḳ;) as alsoاسفى↓. (Az, Ḳ.)

سافت الرِيحُ التُّرَابَ: see 1.

سافاهُ, (Ṣ, Ḳ,) inf. n. مُسَافَاةٌ and سِفَآءٌ, i. q. سَافَهَهُ [He acted in a lightwitted manner, foolishly, or ignorantly, with him]. (Ṣ, Ḳ.)

And He treated him medically, or curatively: (Ḳ:) from سَفَآءٌ. (TA. [But see سِفَآءٌ, below.])

اسِفى He took for himself a mule such as is termed سَفْوَآء, i. e. quick [&c.]. (Ḳ.)

أسْفَتْ said of the wind, intrans. and trans.: see 1, in two places.

اسفى said of corn, It became rough, or coarse, in the extremities [or awn] of its ears. (Ṣ, Ḳ.)

اسفت said of بُهْمَى [or barley-grass], It let fall its سَفَا [or prickles, or awn, or extremities]. (M, Ḳ.)

And اسفى said of a man, He took the prickles [or awn or extremities] of the بُهْمَى [or barley-grass]. (TA.)

Also, said of a man, He removed dust, or earth, (سَفًا, TA) from one place to another. (Az, Ḳ.)

And اسفت said of a she-camel, ‡ She became lean, or emaciated, (Ḳ,) so that she was like the سَفا [or prickles of barley-grass]. (TA.)

See also 1, last sentence.

اسفاهُ It (an affair, or event, M) incited him (a man, Ḳ) to unsteadiness, and levity. (M, Ḳ.)

And hence, perhaps, (M,) اسفى بِهِ He did evil or ill, or acted ill, to him, or with him, (M, Ḳ,) i. e., his companion. (M.)

استفى وَجْهَهُ i. q. اِصْطَرَفَهُ, (Ṣgh, Ḳ,) i. e. He turned away his face. (TḲ.)

سَفًا Lightness, thinness, or scantiness, in the hair of the forelock, (Ṣ, M, Mgh, Ḳ,) of the horse, in which it is discommended, (Ṣ,* Z, Mgh,) and of the mule and ass, in both of which it is commended: (Z, Mgh:) or shortness, and scantiness, of the forelock: accord. to Th, it is سَفَآءٌ↓, with medd: which is metaphorically used by a poet as meaning scantiness in milk. (M.) [Accord. to the TḲ, the former is an inf. n., of which the verb is سَفِىَ↓, said of a horse, as meaning He was, or became, light, thin, or scanty, in the forelock.]

And, accord. to IAạr, A whiteness [or a tinge thereof] in the hair [of a horse]: particularly said by him in one place to be such as is termed أَدْهَم, and such as is أَشْقَر. (M, in art. سفو.)

Also, [but more properly written سَفًى, the last radical in this case being ىِ,] Dust, or earth; (Ṣ, M, Ḳ;) and soسَافٍ↓: (TA:) or this is applied to earth, or dust, [as meaning pouring down,] from سَفَى التُّرَابُ [expl. above]: (Ḥam p. 454:) the former signifies dust, or earth, though not raised and carried away, or dispersed, by the wind: or, accord. to the T, whatever is raised and carried away, or dispersed, by the wind: (TA:) accord. to IAạr, dust, or earth, taken forth from a grave or a well: (M:) سَفَاةٌ is a more special term, (Ṣ,) the n. un., (M,) سَفَاةٌ مِنْ تُرَابٍ signifying a collection (كُبَّةٌ) of dust, or earth. (Ḥam p. 810.)

Also Any kind of tree having prickles, or thorns: (Ḳ: [but this seems to have been erroneously taken from what here follows:]) the prickles [or awn or beard] of بُهْمَى [or barley-grass], (Ṣ, M,) and of the ears of corn, [of wheat or barley, (TA in art. خدش,)] and of anything having prickles: accord. to Th, the extremities of بُهْمَى: n. un. سَفَاةٌ, as above. (M.)

Also Leanness, or emaciation, (Ḳ, TA,) in consequence of disease. (TA.)

It is also an inf. n. of سَفِىَ as syn. with سَفِهَ, expl. above. (M, Ḳ.)

سَفَآءٌ: see the first sentence of the next preceding paragraph: it is expl. in the Ḳ [and also in the M] as signifying A stopping, stopping short, or ceasing, of the she-camel's milk: and ISd cites [in the M, after Th], from a poet, the phrase فَى أَلْبَانِهِنَّ سَفَآءُ [ending a verse,] referring to [she-camels such as are termed] قَلَائِص: but Az relates it differently, فِى أَلْبابِهِنَّ with ب [in the place of ن]; saying that سَفَآءٌ means lightness, or levity, in anything; and ignorance; and that the phrase, as he cites it, means in whose faculties of understanding is lightness. (TA.) [See 1, last sentence: and] see also what next follows.

سِفَآءٌ, accord. to the Ḳ, signifies A medicine, or remedy: [see 3, last signification:] but this requires consideration; for it is said in the M, [السَّفَآءُ↓ signifies unsteadiness, and levity; and IAạr says,] السَّفَآءُ from السَّفِىُّ is like الشَّقَآءُ from الشَّقِىُّ. (TA.)

سَفِىُّّ Dust raised, or made to fly, and carried away, or dispersed, by the wind; (Ṣ, Ḳ;) and (Ḳ) so سَافٍ↓, (M, Ḳ,) i. q.مَسْفِىٌّ↓; a possessive epithet, or of the measure فَاعِلٌ in the sense of the measure مَفْعُولٌ. (M. [See another explanation of سَاف voce سَفًا, from the Ḥamáseh. Freytag explains both سَفِىٌّ and سَافٍ, as on the authority of the Ḳ, as epithets applied to the wind, not to the dust.])

Also Clouds; [app. as being driven by the wind;] syn. سَحَابٌ. (Ṣ.)

And i. q. سَفِيهٌ [Lightwitted,, &c.: see 1, last sentence]. (M, Ḳ.) [And it seems to be indicated in the Ṣ that سَافٍ↓ is syn. with سَافِهٌ, which is syn. with سَفِيهٌ.]

سَافِيَآءُ Dust, syn. غُبَارٌ: (M, Ḳ:) or dust (تُرَابٌ) and dry herbage or the like: (Ḥam p. 445:) or dust (تُرَابٌ) with the wind: (M:) or wind that bears, or carries, or carries away, dust, (M, Ḳ, TA,) much, upon the surface of the earth, impelling it against men: (TA, and in like manner in the Ḥam ubi suprà:) andرِيَاحٌ سَوَافٍ↓, (TA,) pl. of رِيحٌ سَافِيَةٌ, (Ḥam ubi suprà,) winds that raise the dust, or make it to fly, and carry it away, or disperse it: you say, لَعِبَتْ بِهِ السَّوَافَى [The winds raising the dust,, &c., made sport with him, or it]. (TA.)

[Also Tracks, or streaks, upon a pool put in motion by the wind: so says Freytag; but he names not any authority for this.]

أسْفَى applied to a horse, (Aṣ, Ṣ, M, Mgh,) Light, thin, or scanty, in the hair of the forelock: (Aṣ, Ṣ, M, Mgh, Ḳ:) or short and scanty therein: fem. سَفْوَآءُ: (M:) [and accord. to some, it seems to be in like manner applied to a mule and an ass: (see سَفًا:)] one says فَرَسٌ أَسْفَى and بَغْلَةٌ سَفْوَآءُ: (Mgh:) [or,] accord. to Aṣ, أَسْفَى in the sense first expl. above is not applied to anything but a horse: applied to a mule, it means † quick, or swift: (Ṣ:) or بَغْلَةٌ سَفْوَآءُ signifies ‡ a she-mule that is quick, or swift, (Ṣ, M, A, Ḳ, TA,) like the wind, (A, TA,) active, or light, (Ṣ,) of middling make, compact and strong in the back; (M, TA;) and in like manner سَفْوَآءُ is applied to a wild she-ass. (M.)

Accord. to IAạr, الأَسْفَى applied to the horse signifies اَلَّذِى تَنْزِعُهُ شَعَرَةٌ بَيْضَآءُ [app. meaning Distinguished by some white hairs, though I find no authority for thus rendering the verb here used] whether he be bay or of some other colour: or having that whiteness of the hair which is termed سَفًا [expl. above], which is particularly said by him in one place to be in such as is termed أَدْهَم, and such as is أَشْقَر: and the fem. in this sense also is as above. (M.)

One says also رِيحٌ هَوْجَآءُ, meaning ‡ A swift wind; like as one says مُسْفٍ. (TA.)

مُسْفٍ [and, accord. to Golius, سَفَّآءٌ↓, mentioned by him as on the authority of the Ḳ, in which, however, I do not find it, nor did Freytag,] A calumniator, or slanderer. (Ḳ.)