التفسير والتأويل: هما بمعنى واحد عند المتقدمين
Among earlier scholars, tafsir and taʾwil were used with the same meaning.
Accordingly, when an early authority uses the word taʾwil, one must not automatically impose a later specialized definition upon it. In context, it may simply denote explaining a verse or identifying its meaning.
Technical vocabulary can change across periods and disciplines. Interpreting a scholar's statement therefore requires attention to context, method and the precise question under discussion—not the isolated word alone.