Classical Arabic - English Dictionary

فَقِهَ, aor. ـَ {يَفْقَهُ}, (Ṣ, Mṣb, Ḳ, &c.,) inf. n. فِقْهٌ, the verb being like عَلِمَ and the inf. n. like عِلْمٌ, in measure and in meaning, (TA,) or فَقَهٌ; (JK; [and the same seems to be implied in the Mṣb and the Ḳ;]) and فَقُهَ; (Mṣb, Ḳ;) He had, or possessed, what is termed فِقْهٌ, meaning understanding, (Ṣ, Ḳ,) and knowledge, and intelligence, and especially knowledge of the law (عِلْمُ الدِّينِ): (Ḳ:) or both are syn. with عَلِمَ: (Mṣb, TA:) or فَقُهَ, of which the inf. n. is فَقَاهَةٌ, (Ṣ, TA,) or فِقْهٌ, (JK,) signifies [peculiarly] he had, or possessed, knowledge of the law (عِلْم الشَّرِيعَة): (Ṣ:) or this latter verb signifies he had, or possessed, what is termed فِقْةٌ as a faculty firmly rooted in his mind: (Mṣb, TA:) or, accord. to IB, i. q.تَفَقَّهَ↓ [q. v., as intrans.]: and he was, or became, [a فَقِيه, q. v., or] equal to the فُقَهآء. (TA in art. علم: see علم.) One says, فُلَانٌ لَا يَنْقَهُ [which may be rendered Such a one will not understand nor comprehend: but the two verbs are exactly syn.]. (Ṣ.) And to the witness one says, كَيْفَ فَقَاهَتُكَ لِمَا أَشْهَدْ نَاكَ [app. meaning How is thy understanding of (or how understandest thou) what we have made thee to witness?]: it is not said to any other than the witness: (Ḳ, TA:) thus in the M: (TA:) or, accord. to Z, it is said to other than the witness. (Ḳ,* TA.)

And فَقِهَهُ, (Mgh, Ḳ,) aor. ـَ {يَفْقَهُ}, inf. n. فِقْهٌ, (Ḳ,) He understood it, (Mgh, Ḳ,) namely, a meaning, (Mgh,) or a thing that one explained to him; (TA;) as alsoتفقّههُ↓. (Ḳ.)

See also 3.

فقّههُ, (Ṣ, Ḳ,) inf. n. تَفْقِيهٌ, (Ḳ,) He (God) made him to know or have knowledge [or to understand, or instructed him], or taught him; (Ṣ,* Ḳ, TA;) and (Ḳ) so افقههُ↓, (Mṣb, Ḳ,) or he made him to understand. (Ṣ, Mgh.) It is said in a trad., اَللّٰهُمَّ عَلِّمْهُ الدِّينَ وَفَقِّهْهُ فِى التَّأْوِيلِ i. e. O God, teach him الدين [app. here meaning the science of the law] and [instruct him in] the تأويل [or interpretation,, &c.,] and the meaning thereof. (TA.) And you say,أَفْقَهْتُكَ↓ الشَّىْءَ I made thee to understand, (Ṣ, Mṣb,*) or I taught thee, (Mṣb,) the thing. (Ṣ, Mṣb.) Andأَفْقَنْتُهُ↓ I explained to him the learning of الفِقْه [meaning the science of the law]. (T, TA.)

فاقههُ He searched with him into [matters of] science, disputing with him, (Ṣ, Ḳ,) فَفَقَهَهُ↓, aor. ـُ {يَفْقُهُ}, [inf. n. فَقْهٌ,] and he overcame him therein. (Ḳ.)

تفقّه He learned knowledge, or science: (M voce سَوَّدَ:) [and particularly] he learned الفِقْه [meaning the science of the law]: (JK:) or he took, or applied himself, to the acquisition of الفِقْه [meaning thus]. (Ṣ, TA.) And تفقّه فِى العِلْمِ is like تَعَلَّمَ [meaning He became, or made himself, learned, or thoroughly learned, in science]. (Mṣb.) لِيَتَفَقَّهُوا فِى الدِّينِ, in the Ḳur ix. 123, means That they may task themselves to obtain understanding in الدّيَنْ [i. e. the law, or religion in general], imposing upon themselves the difficulties attendant on the acquisition thereof. (Ksh, Bḍ.) See also 1, in two places; in the latter of which it is mentioned as transitive.

فِقْهٌ [as a simple subst.] signifies Understanding (Ṣ, Mṣb, Ḳ) of a thing; (Mṣb, Ḳ;) and knowledge thereof; (Mṣb, Ḳ;) and intelligence: (Ḳ:) accord. to IF, any knowledge of a thing is thus termed: (Mṣb:) [hence فِقْهُ اللُّغَةِ The science of lexicology is the title of a work written by him; and of another work, by Eth-Tha'álibee:] and, as used by the lawyers [and others], الفِقْهُ denotes a particular science; (Mṣb;) it signifies particularly, (Ṣ, TA,) or predominantly, (Ḳ, TA,) The science of the law; [jurisprudence;] (Ṣ, Ḳ, TA;) syn. عِلْمُ الشَّرِيعَةِ, (Ṣ, TA,) or عِلْمُ الدِّينِ, [which is the same as علم الشريعة,] because of its preëminence (Ḳ, TA) above the other kinds of science: (TA:) and more particularly, the science of the فُرُوع [or derivative institutes] of the law. (TA.)

فَقِيهٌ Any one possessing knowledge of a thing. (TA.) فَفِيهُ العَرَبِ signifies The عَالِم [or man of knowledge] of the Arabs; (TA;) and was an appellation given to El-Hárith Ibn-Keledeh (الحٰرِثُ بْنُ كَلَدَةَ), who was also called طَبِيبُ العَرَبِ [as is said in the Ṣ in art. ازم], because this appellation is syn. with the former; but IKh and El-Ḥareeree do not mean by فقيها لعرب any particular person. (Mz, close of the 39th نوع.)

[Particularly and predominantly,] فَقِيهٌ signifies One possessing knowledge of the law; [a lawyer;] (Ṣ, Ḳ;) as alsoفَقُهٌ↓; (Mṣb, Ḳ;) fem. فَقِيهَةٌ andفَقُهَةٌ↓: pl. [of فَقِيهٌ] فُقَهَآءُ; and [of فَفِيهَةٌ] فَقَائِهُ and فُقَهَآءُ; (Ḳ;) the last of these pls. mentioned by Lḥ, and anomalous, as applied to women: ISd says, “in my opinion, he, of the Arabs, who says فُقَهَآء [in speaking of women] takes no account of the fem. ة: it is like فُقَرَآءُ applied to women.” (TA.) [In Egypt, the appellation فِقِى, a vulgar corruption of فَقِيه, is now applied to A schoolmaster; and to a person who recites the Ḳur-án, &c. for hire.]

فَحْلٌ فَقِيهٌ means A stallion [camel] expert in covering, (Ḳ, TA,) that knows well the she-camels that are lusting, and the pregnant. (TA.)

المُسْتَفْقِهَةُ The female companion of the wailing woman, who responds to her (Ḳ, TA) in what she says; because she catches and retains quickly, and understands, what she [the former] says, and to reply to it: [as though it signified “she who seeks, or desires, to understand:”] it is said in a trad. that each of these persons is cursed by God. (TA.)