LessonsMuḥkam, Mutashābih, Kināyah, Taʿrīḍ and Figurative AttributionQuiz

«أَوْ لَامَسْتُمُ النِّسَاءَ»
“Or you have had contact with women.” (al-Nisāʾ 4:43, excerpt)

The Arabic root for touching may be discussed in relation to physical contact and, in certain usages, an indirect reference to marital intimacy. The wording thus supplies an example of lexical alternatives, while the legal application requires more than selecting an English gloss.

Neither the claim that only one interpretation is linguistically possible nor the claim that all interpretations are equally persuasive follows from the word alone. The context and other relevant evidence must be evaluated separately. Recognizing an ambiguity is one step; deciding the resultant juristic issue is another.

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“Lamastum al-nisāʾ”: a lexical question

Muḥkam, Mutashābih, Kināyah, Taʿrīḍ and Figurative Attribution

«أَوْ لَامَسْتُمُ النِّسَاءَ»
“Or you have had contact with women.” (al-Nisāʾ 4:43, excerpt)

The Arabic root for touching may be discussed in relation to physical contact and, in certain usages, an indirect reference to marital intimacy. The wording thus supplies an example of lexical alternatives, while the legal application requires more than selecting an English gloss.

Neither the claim that only one interpretation is linguistically possible nor the claim that all interpretations are equally persuasive follows from the word alone. The context and other relevant evidence must be evaluated separately. Recognizing an ambiguity is one step; deciding the resultant juristic issue is another.