Classical Arabic - English Dictionary

صَبَعَ بِهِ, aor. ـَ {يَصْبَعُ}, (AZ, Ṣ, Ḳ,) inf. n. صَبْعٌ, (AZ, Ṣ,) He pointed at him, or towards him, with his finger, (بِإِصْبَعِهِ,) disparagingly: (AZ, Ṣ, Ḳ:) or, as some say, he meant some evil thing to him when he (the latter) was inadvertent, not knowing. (TA.)

And صَبَعَ فُلَانًا عَلَى فُلَانٍ He directed such a one to such a one by pointing, or indication: (Ṣ, Ḳ:) because, when one directs a man to a way, or road, or to a thing that is latent, or obscure, he points towards it with the finger. (TA.) One says, مَا صَبَعَكَ عَلَيْنَا What directed thee to us? (TA.) And صَبَعَ بَيْنَ القَوْمِ He directed others to the people, or party. (TA.) Of one who magnifies himself, or acts proudly, in his government, or administration, one says, صَبَعَهُ الشَّيْطَانُ † [app. meaning The Devil has directed him]: and أَدْرَكَتْهُ أَصَابِعُ الشَّيْطَانِ [The fingers of the Devil have reached him]. (TA. [See the pass. part. n. below.])

And one says, قُرِّبَ إِلَيْهِ طَعَامٌ فَمَا صَبَعَ فِيهِ i. e. [Food was presented, or offered, to him, or was placed, or put, before him, and] he did not put his finger into it. (TA.) [See also صَبَأَ, near the end.]

And صَبَعَ الدَّجَاجَةَ, (O, Ḳ,) inf. n. as above. (TA,) He inserted his finger into the hen in order that he might know if she were [near] laying an egg or not: (O, Ḳ:) mentioned by Z. (TA.)

And صَبَعَ الإِنَآءَ He put his finger upon the vessel so that what was in another vessel flowed upon it [into the former vessel]: (AʼObeyd, Ṣ, O, Ḳ:) or, as some say, he put together his two fingers, [or two of his fingers,] then discharged, or let flow, what was in the vessel, of wine, or beverage, into a thing with a narrow head [or mouth]: or, accord. to Az, he discharged, or let flow, what was in the vessel, of wine, or beverage, between the extremities of [either of] his two thumbs and fore fingers, in order that it might not become scattered, and pour forth copiously. (TA.)

And صَبَعَهُ, inf. n. as above, He hit, or hurt, his finger. (TA.)

صَبَعَ عَلَى القَوْمِ, inf. n. as above, meaning He came forth upon the people, or party, is said to be originally صَبَأَ, with ء. (TA.)

[اصبع, followed by عَلَى, is said by Freytag, as on the authority of Meyd, to signify He (a pastor) fed and managed well his cattle: but this is perhaps taken from a mistranscription of the saying, mentioned by Meyd, لِلرَّاعِى عَلَى مَاشِيَتَهِ إِصْبَعٌ, q. v. infrà.]

صَبْعٌ ‡ Self-magnification, or pride; (O, Ḳ, TA;) such as is consummate; (TA;) and haughtiness, or insolence, or vain glory; (O, TA;) andمُصْبَعَةٌ↓ signifies the same. (O, Ḳ, TA.)

صُبْعٌ i. q. صُبْحٌ [q. v.]: the ع being substituted for the ح. (MF on the letter ع.)

إِصْبَعٌ and أُصْبَعٌ and أُصْبُعٌ and إِصْبِعٌ and أَصْبِعٌ (Ṣ, O, Mṣb, Ḳ) and إِصْبُعٌ and أَصْبَعٌ (O, Mṣb, Ḳ) and أَصْبُعٌ and أُصْبِعٌ, the ء being thus trebly vowelled, and the ب likewise (Mṣb, Ḳ) with every one of the vowellings of the ء, (Ḳ,) andأُصْبُوعٌ↓ also, (Mṣb, Ḳ,) of all which forms the first is the [only] one commonly known and the one approved by persons of chaste speech, (Mṣb,) all mentioned by Kr, (Ḳ,) and by Lḥ also on the authority of Yoo, (TA,) A finger: and a toe: (MA, KL, &c.:) of the fem. gender, (Mṣb,) or fem. and masc., (Ṣ, O, Mṣb, Ḳ,*) but generally fem.: (O, Mṣb, Ḳ:*) pl. (of اصبع, MA) أَصَابِعُ and (of اصبوع, MA) أَصَابِيعُ. (MA, Ḳ.)

One says, بِهِمْ تُثْنَى الأَصَابِعُ [With the mention of them the fingers are bent]; meaning that they are reckoned as the best, [or among the best,] for the best are not many. (M, on a verse cited in the first paragraph {1} of art. ثنى.) [See also two similar exs. in the first paragraph {1} of art. حنو and حنى.]

And لِلرَّاعِى عَلَى مَاشِيَتِهِ إِصْبَعٌ ‡ [The pastor has a finger pointing at his cattle, or camels or sheep or goats]; meaning, [has upon his cattle] an impress of a good state or condition; (Ṣ, Ḳ,* TA;) i. e. they are pointed at with the fingers because of their goodliness and fatness and good tending. (TA.) [See also a verse cited voce صُلْبٌ.] And similar to this saying is the prov., عَلَيْهِ مِنَ ٱللّٰهِ تَعَالَى إِصْبَعٌ حَسَنٌ, meaning † [Upon him is, from God, (acknowledged be his absolute supremacy,)] an impress of a good state or condition. (Meyd.) And one says also, إِنَّهُ لَحَسَنُ الإِصْبَعِ فِى مَالِهِ, meaning † Verily he is good in respect of the impress upon his cattle [indicative of their state or condition]. (IAạr, TA.)

And فُلَانٌ مُغِلُّ الإِصْبَعِ ‡ Such a one is unfaithful, treacherous, or perfidious. (O, Ḳ,* TA.*)

And لَهُ إِصْبَعٌ فِى هٰذَا الأَمْرِ ‡ [He has a finger in this affair]. (TA.)

The Prophet said قَلْبُ المُؤْمِنِ بَيْنَ إِصْبَعَيْنِ مِنْ أَصَابِعِ ٱللّٰهِ يُقَلِّبُهُ كَيْفَ شَآءَ ‡ [The heart of the believer is between two of the fingers of God: He turneth it about as He pleaseth]. (O.)

And a man says, in respect of a difficult affair, when he has been made to have recourse to a strong man, able to bear his burden, إِنَّهُ يَأْتِى عَلَيْهِ بِإِصْبِعٍ وَاحِدَةٍ † [Verily he will make an end of it with one finger]: and إِنَّهُ يَكْفِيهِ بِصُغْرَى أَصَابِعِهِ † [Verily the smallest of his fingers will suffice him for its accomplishment; the ب thus prefixed to the agent being redundant, as in كَفَى بِٱللّٰهِ شَهِيدًا and many other instances]. (O.)

أَبُو الإِصْبَعِ is one of the surnames of The Devil. (TA. [See صَبَعَهُ الشِّيْطَانُ, above.])

[إِصْبَعٌ signifies also † A prong, as resembling a finger: so in the Ṣ and Ḳ in art. حفر, and in other instances.]

أَصَابِعُ الفَتَيَاتِ, (O, TṢ, Ḳ,) in the “Minháj” of Ibn-Jezleh اصابع الفتيان, [app. a mistranscription,] and in the I, اصابع البُنَيَّاتِ, (TA,) † [Common clinopodium, or wild basil,] the sweet-smelling plant called in Pers. الفَرَنْجَمُشْك, (AḤn, O, Ḳ,) which grows abundantly in the southern parts of Arabia, and is not depastured by any animal. (AḤn, O.)

أَصَابِعُ العَذَارَى † A species of grapes, (AḤn, O, Ḳ,) black, (AḤn, O,) long, like the acorn, likened to the dyed fingers of virgins; (AḤn, O, Ḳ;*) the bunch thereof is about a cubit [in length], compact [so I render مُتَدَاخِس, supposing it to be similar to دخيس applied to herbage, &c.,] in the grapes; its raisins are good; and it grows in the Saráh (السَّرَاة). (AḤn, O.)

أَصَابِعُ هُرْمُسَ † The flowers (فُقَّاح) of the سُورَنْجَان [or Hermodactylus (the Iris of Linn.?) now applied to meadow-saffron, a species of colchicum]; (O, Ḳ;) the potency of which is like that of the سورنجان [itself]. (TA.)

أَصَابِعُ فِرْعَونَ † [Certain things] resembling the مَرَاوِيد [or مَرَاوِد with which كُحْل is applied], of the length of the finger, (Ḳ, TA,) red; (TA;) brought from the Sea of El-Ḥijáz; of proved efficacy for the speedy consolidation of wounds. (Ḳ.)

أَصَابِعُ صُفْرٌ † The root (أَصْل) of a certain plant of which the form is like the hand, (O, Ḳ,) variegated with yellowness and whiteness, hard, and having a little sweetness; and there is a species thereof yellow, with a dust-colour, but without whiteness: (O, TA:) so says Ibn-Jezleh: (TA:) it is beneficial as a remedy for madness, or diabolical possession, and for poisons, (Ḳ, TA,) and the sting, or bite, of venomous, or noxious, reptiles, or the like, and it acts as a dissolvent of thick excrescences. (TA.)

As a measure, إِصْبَعٌ signifies [A digit; i. e. a finger's breadth;] the width of six moderate-sized barley-corns; (Mṣb voce جَرِيبٌ;) the forth part of the قَبْضَة. (Mgh and Mṣb ibid.)

مَصْبُوعٌ ‡ Self-magnifying, or proud. (IAạr, O, Ḳ, TA.)