Classical Arabic - English Dictionary

The primary signification of [the inf. n.] شفر [i. e. شَفْرٌ, of which the verb is app. شَفَرَ,] is The act of cutting, or cutting off; syn. قَطْعٌ. (Ḥam p. 57.)

شَفَرَهَا, (Ḳ,) inf. n. شَفْرٌ, (TA,) He struck her (a woman's) شُفْر (Ḳ, TA) in compressing her. (TA.)

And شَفَرَ [or app. شَفَرَ إِنْسَانًا] He annoyed, molested, harmed, or hurt, a man. (IAạr, O, TA.)

شَفِرَتْ, aor. ـَ {يَشْفَرُ}, inf. n. شَفَارَةٌ, She (a woman) was one whose gratification of her venereal lust (شَهْوَتُهَا) soon took place: (Ḳ:) or she emitted; [or, app., emitted soon;] syn. أَنْزَلَتْ. (TA.)

And شَفِرَ, aor. ـَ {يَشْفَرُ}, It decreased, diminished, or became defective or deficient. (IAạr, Ḳ.)

شفّرها, (Ḳ,) inf. n. تَشْفِيرٌ, (Ibn-ʼAbbád, O, Ḳ,) He compressed her (i. e. a woman, Ibn-ʼAbbád, O) on the شُفْر of her فَرْج. (Ibn-ʼAbbád, O, Ḳ.)

And شَفَّرْتُ الشَّىْءَ, inf. n. as above, I eradicated, or extirpated, the thing. (TA.)

شفّر المَالُ, (O, Ḳ,) inf. n. as above, (Ḳ,) The property became little: (O, Ḳ:) and went away: (Ḳ:) from IAạr. (TA.)

And شفّر said of a man, He gave little. (Ḥam p. 242.)

And شفّرت الشَّمْسُ (O, Ḳ) لِلْغُرُوبِ (O) † The sun became near to setting; (O, Ḳ;) being likened to a man whose property has become little, and gone away. (TA.)

And in like manner, (TA,) شفّر عَلَى أَمْرٍ (Ibn-ʼAbbád, O, Ḳ) and لِأَمْرٍ, (Ibn-ʼAbbád, O,) said of a man, † He was, or became, on the brink, or verge, of the affair, or event, or case. (Ibn-ʼAbbád, O, Ḳ.)

اشفر is said in the Tekmileh to signify He (a camel) strove, or exerted himself, in running: but perhaps it should be اشغر, mentioned before [in art. شغر]. (TA.)

شُفْرٌ The place of growth of the eyelash, (Sh, T, Ṣ, A, Mṣb, Ḳ,) which is the edge of the eyelid; (Ṣ, Mṣb;) as alsoشَفْرٌ↓ (Kr, A, Ḳ) andشَفِيرٌ↓: (Ḳ:) or, accord. to some, this last signifies the upper side of the inner angle of the eye: (TA:) and with the vulgar, the first signifies the eyelash; but this is [said to be] a mistake: (IḲt, Mṣb:) it occurs, however, in this sense, in a trad. of Esh-Shaabee; (IAth, TA;) and in like manner the pl. occurs in another trad.; but the word شَعَر should be considered as understood before it; or what grows is thus called by the name of the places of growth, and the like of this is not rare: (Mgh:) it is of the masc. gender: (Lḥ, Ḳ:) and the pl. is أَشْفَارٌ, (Sb, Ṣ, Mgh, Mṣb,) the only pl. form. (Sb, TA.) [Hence,] one says,مَا بِالدَّارِ شَفْرٌ↓, (Ks, Fr, T, Ṣ, Mṣb, Ḳ,) and شُفْرٌ, (Lḥ, Mṣb, Ḳ,) but Sh disallows this latter, (TA,) andشَفْرَةٌ↓, (Fr, Ṣgh, Ḳ,) ‡ There is not in the house any one: (Ṣ, Mṣb, Ḳ, &c.:) andمِنْهُمْ شَفْرًا↓ مَا رَأَيْتُ ‡ I saw not of them any one: from the شفر of the eye: meaning one having a شفر: (A:) and شفر is also used in this sense without a negation. (TA.) One says likewise, مَا تَرَكَتِ السَّنَةُ ظُفْرًا وَلَا شُفْرًا ‡ The year of drought left not anything: and sometimes they saidشَفْرًا↓, with fet-ḥ, and in this case they said ظَفْرًا, for assimilation. (A.)

Also, (Ṣ A, Mgh, Mṣb, Ḳ,) andشَفِيرٌ↓, (Ṣ, A, Mṣb, Ḳ,) The edge, border, margin, brink, brow, (Ṣ, Mgh, Mṣb,) or side, (A, Ḳ,) of anything; (Ṣ, A, Mgh, Mṣb, Ḳ;) as of a valley and the like, (Ṣ,) or as of a river, &c.: (Mgh and Mṣb, in relation to the latter word:) one says,قَعَدُوا عَلَى شَفِيرِ↓ النَّهْرِ, and البِئْرِ, and القَبْرِ, They sat upon the side of the river, and of the well, and of the grave: (A:) and both words signify the side of the upper part of a valley. (Ḳ.)

And الشُّفْرُ, (Ḳ,) or شُفْرُ الفَرْجِ, (Mṣb,) and شُفْرُ المَرْأَةِ, (TA,) The edge, (Mṣb, Ḳ,) or border, (TA,) of the vulva, or external portion of the organs of generation, [meaning, of each of the labia majora,] of a woman: (Mṣb, Ḳ, TA:) pl. أَشْفَارٌ: (Mṣb:) the إِسْكَتَانِ are the two sides [or labia majora] of the vulva of a woman; and the شُفْرَانِ are the two borders of the said اسكتان: (AHeyth, Mgh, TA:) Lth says that the شَافِرَانِ↓ are [two parts] of the pudendum muliebre: (TA:) and شُفْرُ الرَّحِمِ andشَافِرُهَا↓ signify [in like manner] the edges of the vulva: (Ṣ:) and شُفْرَا المَرْأَةِ andشَافِرَاهَا↓, the two edges of the رَحِم [or vulva (for الرَّحِم is here used tropically, for الفَرْج, as it is in many other instances,)] of a woman. (TA.)

شَفِرٌ [an epithet of which the fem. only is mentioned]. شَفِرَةٌ andشَفِيرَةٌ↓ signify A woman who experiences the gratification of her venereal lust (شَهْوَتَهَا) in her شُفْر; so that she emits (تُنْزِلُ) speedily: or [in the CK “and”] who is content with the least of coitus: (Ḳ, TA:) contr. of قَعِرَةٌ and قَعِيرَةٌ. (TA.)

شَفْرَةٌ A large knife; (Ṣ, A, Ḳ;) as alsoشِفْرَةٌ↓, though this is mentioned only by the author of the Mgh; (MF; [but it is not in my copy of the Mgh; and Golius mentionsشُفْرَةٌ↓ as having this signification, on the authority of Meyd;]) or a broad knife: (Mgh, Mṣb:) pl. شِفَارٌ (Mṣb, Ḳ) and شَفَرَاتٌ (Mṣb) and [coll. gen. n., of which شِفْرَةٌ is the n. un., or it may be a quasi-pl. n. of شَفْرَةٌ,] شِفْرٌ↓. (TA.)

And hence, (Mgh, TA,) ‡ A servant; (Ṣ, Mgh, TA;) because of his utility. (TA.) It is said in a prov., أَصْغَرُ القَوْمِ شَفْرَتُهُمْ ‡ The least of the party is their servant. (Ṣ, Mgh.)

Also A shoemaker's knife. (Ṣ, Ḳ.)

And A piece of iron made broad, and edged, or pointed. (Ḳ.)

A broad blade: so says the author of the Mgh. (TA. [But not in my copy of the Mgh.])

The edge, or cutting part, (حَدّ,) of a sword: (Ṣ, Mgh, Ḳ:) or the edge of the cutting part of a sword. (TA. [See ذُبَابٌ.]) The side of a blade: (Ḳ:) or each of the two sides thereof. (AḤn, TA.) [Each of the two sharp sides or edges of a spear-head and of an arrow-head.]

See also شُفْرٌ, second sentence.

[شَفُورٌ i. q. زُنْبُورٌ The hornet, or hornets. (Golius, on the authority of Meyd.)]

شَفِيرٌ: see شُفْرٌ, in three places.

Also The edge of the lip of a camel. (Ḳ.)

شَفِيرَةٌ: see شَفِرَةٌ, voce شَفِرٌ.

يَرْبُوعٌ شُفَارِىٌّ A jerboa having hair upon its ears: (Ṣ:) or having large ears: or having long ears, and bare toes, [in the CK, for العَارِى البَرَاثِنِ, which is evidently the right reading, we find العالى البراثن,] not quickly overtaken: (Ḳ:) it is [of] a species of jerboa called ضَأْنُ اليَرَابِيعِ, the fattest and the best, with ears somewhat long: (TA:) or having long legs, and soft and fat flesh: (Ḳ:) it is said that it has a nail in the middle of its shank. (TA. [See تَدْمُرِىٌّ.])

ضَبٌّ شُفَارِىٌّ A long and bulky [lizard of the kind called] ضبّ. (Ḥam p. 242.)

أُذُنٌ شُفَارِيَّةٌ (as also شُرَافِيَّةٌ [q. v.], TA) A large ear: (Ḳ:) or a bulky ear: (AʼObeyd, TA:) or a long ear: (AZ, TA:) or a broad ear, soft in the upper part: (TA:) or an ear having much hair and fur. (Ḥam p. 242.)

شَفَّارٌ The possessor of a شَفْرَة [or large knife]. (A,* TA.)

شَافِرٌ, and its dual: see شُفْرٌ, last sentence, in three places.

Also One who destroys, or makes away with, his property: so in the Tekmileh. (TA.)

مِشْفَرٌ The lip of a camel; (Ṣ, Mgh, Mṣb, Ḳ;) as alsoمَشْفَرٌ↓: (Ḳ:) and ‡ of a horse: (Ṣ, TA:) and ‡ of a human being: (Ḳ, TA:) or ‡ of an Abyssinian, as being likened to that of a camel: (AʼObeyd, TA:) pl. مَشَافِرُ. (Ṣ, Ḳ.) It is said in a prov., أَرَاكَ بَشَرٌ مَا أَحَارَ مِشْفَرٌ [lit. External skin hath shown thee what a lip hath transmitted to the stomach;] meaning, the external appearance hath rendered thee in no need of inquiring respecting the internal state: (Ṣ, Ḳ:) originally said of a camel; (TA;) for when you see his external skin, whether he be fat or lean, you take it as an indication of the quality of his food. (Ḳ, TA.)

Also The vulva, or external portion of the organs of generation, of a woman: (R, MF:) but this is strange. (TA.)

And ‡ A piece of land: and of sand: (Ḳ, TA:) each by way of comparison [to the lip of a camel]. (TA.)

Also A state of resistance; inaccessibleness, or unapproachableness: (Ḳ:) strength, or power; (Ḳ,* TA;) vehemence, or hardness, or firmness. (Ḳ, TA.)

And A state of perdition or destruction: and thus it is expl. as used in the saying mentioned by Meyd [in his Proverbs, perhaps the origin of this explanation], تَرَكْتُهُ عَلَى مِثْلِ مِشْفَرِ الأَسَدِ [which may be rendered I left him at the like of the lip of the lion]; (TA;) applied to him who is exposed to destruction. (Meyd, TA.*)

عَيْشٌ مُشَفِرٌ Strait, scanty, subsistence. (O, Ḳ.)