Classical Arabic - English Dictionary

عَصْفَرَ He dyed a garment, or piece of cloth, with عُصْفُر. (Ṣ, O, Mṣb, Ḳ.)

تَعَصْفَرَ It (a garment, or piece of cloth,) became dyed with عُصْفُر. (Ṣ, O, Ḳ.)

عُصْفُرٌ [Safflower, or bastard saffron; i. e., cnicus, or carthamus tinctorius;] a certain dye, (Ṣ, O,) or plant, (Mṣb, Ḳ,) well known, (O, Mṣb,) with which one dyes, (M,) the first juice (سُلَافَة) of which is called جِرْيَال, (TA,) and one of the properties of which is that it causes tough meat to become thoroughly cooked, so as to fall off from the bone, (Ḳ,* TA,) when somewhat thereof is thrown into it: (TA:) its seed is called قُرْطُمٌ: (Ḳ:) there are two kinds of it; one of the cultivated land, and one of the desert; and both grow in the country of the Arabs: (M, TA:) it is an Arabicized word. (Az, TA.)

عُصْفُورٌ (Ṣ, O, Mṣb, Ḳ, &c.) and عَصْفُورٌ, (Ibn-Rasheek, MF,) but the latter is not an approved form, because there is no chaste word of the measure فَعْلُولٌ, (MF, TA,) [The sparrow;] a certain bird, (Ṣ, O, Ḳ,) well known; (Mṣb:) accord. to AḤát, the same that is called the نَقَّار; the male black in the head and neck, the rest of it inclining to ash-colour, with a redness in the wings; the female inclining to yellowness and whiteness: (O:) the word is masc.: (TA:) fem. with ة {عُصْفُورَةٌ}: (Ṣ, O, Ḳ:) pl. عَصَافِيرُ. (Mṣb.) Accord. to Hamzeh, it is so called because it was disobedient, and fled, عَصَى وَفَرَّ. (MF, TA.) [This, I believe, is said to have been the case when the beasts and birds, &c. were summoned before Adam, to be named by him. See the Ḳur ii. 29-31.]

[It is also applied to Any passerine bird. And hence,] عُصْفُورُ الجَنَّةِ [The passerine bird of Paradise; meaning] the swallow; syn. الخُطَّافُ. (ISd in TA art. خطف, and IB in TA art. وط.)

[Also, sometimes, Any small bird.]

طَارَتْ عَصَافِيرُ رَأْسِهِ [lit., The sparrows of his head flew;] is a prov., meaning ‡ he became frightened; as though there were sparrows upon his head when he was still, and they flew away when he was frightened: (Meyd:) [or he became light, or inconstant: or he became angry: like طَارَ طَائِرُهُ: (see طَائِرٌ:)] or he became aged. (TA.)

نَقَّتْ عَصَافِيرُ بَطْنِهِ [lit. The sparrows of his belly cried], (Ḳ,) like نَقَّتْ ضَفَادِعُ بِطْنِهِ, alluding to the intestines, is also a prov., (TA,) meaning ‡ he was, or became, hungry. (Ḳ, TA.) In like manner also one says, لَا تَأْكُلْ حَتَّى تَطِيرَ عَصَافِيرُ بَطْنِكَ, meaning ‡ Eat thou not until thou be hungry. (TA.)

أَصَافِيرُ المُنْذِرِ is an appellation of † Certain excellent camels, that belonged to kings: (Ṣ, O, Ḳ:) or certain excellent camels that belonged to En-Noamán Ibn-El-Mundhir were called أَصَافِيرُ النُّعْمَانِ. (T, TA.)

العُصْفُورُ also signifies The male locust. (O, Ḳ.)

And The chief, or lord. (IAạr, O, Ḳ.)

And The king. (Ḳ.)

Also A portion, (Ṣ, O,) or small portion, (Ḳ,) of the brain, (Ṣ, O, Ḳ,) beneath the فَرْخ of the brain, (TA,) as though separated therefrom: (Ṣ, O, TA:) between the two is a pellicle. (Ṣ, O, Ḳ.)

And A certain vein in the heart. (IF, O.)

And A prominent bone in the temple of the horse, (Ṣ, O, Ḳ,) on the right and on the left; both being called عُصْفُورَانِ. (Ṣ, O.)

And The place whence grows the forelock [app. of the horse]. (M, Ḳ.)

And A narrow blaze extending downwards from the blaze on the forehead of the horse, not reaching to the muzzle. (O, Ḳ.)

The عَصَافِير of a camel's hump see expl. voce عُرْصُوفٌ.

And عُصْفُورٌ signifies also A piece of wood in the [kind of camel-vehicle called] هَوْدَج, uniting the extremities of certain [other] pieces of wood therein; [perhaps what unites the outer extremities of two long pieces of wood which project horizontally from the lower part of the هودج, from the two extremities of either side;] (Ḳ;) having the form of the [kind of saddle called] إِكَاف: (L:) or the pieces of wood which are in the [kind of camel's saddle called] رَحْل, by which the heads of the [curved pieces of wood called the] أَحْنَآء are fastened [together]: (Ḳ:) and the wood by which are fastened the heads of the [kind of saddle called] قَتَب: (Ḳ:) the pl. is عَصَافِيرُ: or the عصافير of the قتب are its عَرَاصِيف, from which عصافير is formed by transposition; and they are four pins of wood which are put between [or rather which unite or conjoin] the heads of the احنآء of the قتب; in each حِنْو are two of these pins, fastened with sinews or with camel's skin; and in it [or appertaining to the same part] are the ظَلِفَات: (Ṣ, O:) or the nails which unite the head of the قتب: (IDrd:) or the عُصْفُور of the [kind of saddle called] إِكَاف is its عُرْصُوف, from which latter word the former is formed by transposition; and it is a piece of wood fastened between [or rather uniting or conjoining] the anterior حِنْوَانِ. (Ṣ, O.) In a trad. it is said that it it is unlawful to cut or shake off aught from the trees of El-Medeeneh, except for the عصفور of a قتب, or to supply a sheave of a pulley, or for the handle of an iron implement. (Ṣ.)

Also A nail of a ship. (O, Ḳ.)