Classical Arabic - English Dictionary

عَكَفَ عَلَيْهِ, aor. ـُ {يَعْكُفُ} and ـِ {يَعْكِفُ}, [the former, only, mentioned in the Mgh, and only the latter in the CK,] inf. n. عُكُوفٌ (Ṣ, O, Mṣb, Ḳ) and عَكْفٌ, (Mṣb, TA,) or the latter is of the trans. verb, (T, TA,) He kept, or clave, to it constantly, or perseveringly; (Ṣ, Mgh,* O, Mṣb, Ḳ, TA;) namely, a thing; (Ṣ, O, Mṣb;) not turning his face from it: or, as some say, he continued intent upon it: (TA:) and, accord. to Er-Rázee,اعتكف↓ عَلَيْهِ would be agreeable with analogy, in the sense of عَكَفَ عليه, but has not been heard. (Ḥar p. 682.) Hence, in the Ḳur [vii. 134], يَعْكُفُونَ عَلَى أَصْنَامٍ لَهُمْ, (Ṣ,* O, TA,) or يَعْكِفُونَ, accord. to different readers, (O, TA,) i. e. A people keeping, or cleaving, constantly, or perseveringly, to the worship of idols belonging to them; (Ksh;) or continuing intent upon the worship of idols belonging to them. (Bḍ, Jel.)

And عُكُوفٌ [or عُكُوفٌ فِى مَكَانٍ] signifies The keeping, or cleaving, to a place. (TA.) See also 8.

And one says, عَكَفَتِ الخَيْلُ بِقَائِدِهَا meaning أَقْبَلَتْ عَلَيْهِ [i. e. The horses, or horsemen, (for the latter may be meant notwithstanding the fem. pronoun, agreeably with an ex. in De Sacy's Gram., sec. ed., ii. 265,) advanced, or approached, towards their leader; or kept, or clave, to him]. (TA.)

And عَكَفُوا حَوْلَهُ They went round it; (Ṣ, O, Ḳ;) namely, a thing. (Ṣ, O.) El-ʼAjjáj says,*عَكْفَ النَّبِيطِ يَلْعَبُونَ الفَنْزَجَا [Like the going round of the Nabathæans playing the game called فَنْزضج: in which عَكْفَ is probably used by poetic license for عُكُوفَ]. (Ṣ, O.) And in like manner one says, عَكَفَتِ الطَّيْرُ عَلَى القَتِيلِ, (O,) or حَوْلَ القَتِيلِ, (Ḳ,) [The birds went round the slain person], inf. n. عُكُوفٌ. (TA.) And عَكَفَ الجَوْهَرُ فِى النَّظْمِ (Ṣ, O, Ḳ) i. e. [The gems] went round [among the strung beads]. (O, Ḳ.)

And عَكَفَ signifies also تَأَخَّرَ [He went back or backwards,, &c.; or became, or remained, behind;, &c.]. (O, Ḳ.)

عَكَفَهُ, aor. ـُ {يَعْكُفُ} and ـِ {يَعْكِفُ}, [the former, only, mentioned in the Mgh, and only the latter in the CK,] inf. n. عَكْفٌ, (Ṣ, O, Mṣb, Ḳ,) He, or it, made him, or it, still, or motionless: (Ṣ, O:) and he, or it, detained, withheld, or debarred, him, or it; (Ṣ, Mgh, O, Mṣb, Ḳ;) as alsoعكّفهُ↓, (O,* TA,) inf. n. تَعْكِيفٌ; (TA;) and so عَكَفَ بِهِ. (Ḥar p. 293.) One says, عَكَفْتُهُ عَنْ حَاجَتِهِ, (Mṣb,) aor. and inf. n. as above, (TA,) I withheld him from the object of his want: (Mṣb:) or I turned him away, or back, therefrom. (TA.) And مَا عَكَفَكَ عَنْ كَذَا [What has withheld thee, or turned thee away or back, from such a thing?]. (Ṣ, O.)

See also 2.

عَكَفَ, (O, Ḳ,) inf. n. عَكْفٌ, (O,) also signifies رَعَى [app. as trans., meaning He tended, or pastured, cattle;, &c.]. (O, Ḳ.)

And i. q. أَصْلَحَ [He put into a good, sound, right, or proper, state;, &c.]. (O, Ḳ.)

see 1, last quarter.

One says, عكّف السِّلْكُ السُّمُوطَ i. e. [The thread of the necklace] kept from becoming scattered [the things suspended therefrom]. (O, from a verse of El-Aạshà.)

And عُكِّفَ النَّظْمُ, inf. n. تَعْكِيفٌ, The strung beads had gems disposed in regular order (نُضِّدَ, Lth, O, or نُظِمَ, Ḳ) among them. (Lth, O, Ḳ.)

And عُكِّفَ الشَّعَرُ The hair was crisped, curled, or twisted, and contracted. (O, Ḳ.) And عكّفت شَعَرَهَا She (a woman) made her hair to cleave together, one part to another, and disposed it in plaits; as alsoعَكَفَتْهُ↓; (Ḥam p. 267;) but, accord. to Lth, they seldom said عَكَفَ in relation to hair that is termed مَعْكُوف, i. e. “combed and plaited,” though, if this were said, it would be correct. (O.)

[عاكف, accord. to Reiske, as mentioned by Freytag, (app. followed by an accus.,) signifies He clave continually to the side of any one.]

تعكّف He confined, restrained, withheld, or debarred, himself; (O, Ḳ;) as alsoاعتكف↓: one should not say انعكف↓. (Ḳ.)

see 1, first sentence: and see also 5.

اعتكف, (Mgh, O, Mṣb, Ḳ,*) or اعتكف فِى المَسْجِدِ, (Ṣ, O,* Ḳ,*) andعَكَفَ↓ فِيهِ, signify the same, (O, Ḳ,) i. e. He secluded himself, (Ṣ, O, TA,) or remained, (Mgh, TA,) in the mosque, or place of worship, (Ṣ, Mgh, O, TA,) performing a particular sort of religious service, with the observance of certain conditions, (Mgh,) [during a period of days and nights, or at least during one whole day, fasting from daybreak to sunset, and occupying himself in prayer and religious meditation, without any interruption by affairs distracting the mind from devotion and not pressing,] not going forth therefrom except for human necessity: (TA:) اِعْتِكَافٌ is thus termed because it is the withholding oneself from the customary exercises of freedom of action in the disposal, or management, of affairs. (Mṣb.)

عَكِفٌ Crisp, curly, or twisted, and contracted, hair. (Ibn-ʼAbbád, O, Ḳ.)

عَاكِفٌ Keeping, or cleaving, constantly, or perseveringly, [عَلَى شَىْءٍ to a thing, and فِى مَكَانٍ in a place:] (Ṣ, O:*) or continuing intent [upon a thing]: and remaining, staying, dwelling, or abiding, in a place: (O:) pl. عَاكِفُونَ and عُكُوفٌ (O, Ḳ, TA) and عُكَّفٌ. (TA.) One says, فُلَانٌ عَاكِفٌ عَلَى فَرْجٍ حَرَامٍ [Such a one is keeping, or cleaving, constantly, or perseveringly, to an unlawful فَرْج]. (Ṣ, O.)

مُعَكَّفٌ Bent, crooked, contorted, or distorted. (TA.) [See also مُعَقَّفٌ.]

مَعْكُوفٌ Made still, or motionless: and detained, withheld, or debarred. (Ṣ, O.) Hence مَعْكُوفًا in the Ḳur [xlviii. 25], (Ṣ, O,) meaning Being detained, or withheld; (Mgh, TA;) as expl. by Mujáhid and ʼAṭà. (TA.)

And Hair combed and plaited. (O, Ḳ.) [See also مَعْقُوفٌ, voce مُعَقَّفٌ.]

مُعْتَكَفٌ A man's place of اِعْتِكَاف [or self-seclusion in a mosque or the like: see 8]. (TA.)