عظلم

Root entry · 3 derived lemmas

This root primarily concerns dark, obscure, or intensely colored substances, particularly plant extracts used for dyeing. It also extends to describe a dark or obscure night.

Derived headwords

العَظْلَمnoun

1.
Plant sapclassical
The sap or extract of certain trees, described as having a dark green color, tending towards murkiness.
2.
Red dyeclassical
A red dye, or possibly a dark blue dye like indigo.
3.
Woad plantclassical
It is identified as the plant known as woad (Isatis tinctoria), or specifically the male woad.

العَظْلَمَةnoun

1.
Shrubclassical
A shrub that grows late, remains green, and is described as having a dusty appearance.
2.
Plant descriptionclassical
A plant that grows to about a cubit high on a single stalk, with branches at the tips resembling coriander flowers, and is described as dusty-green.

عَظْلَمadjective

1.
Dark, obscureclassical
Used to describe a night that is dark and obscure, by way of simile.

Parallel reading

العظلم: عصارة بعض الشجر.

Al-'aẓlam: The sap of some trees.

عصارة شجر لونه كالنيل أخضر إلى الكدرة.

Sap of a tree whose color is like indigo, green tending towards murkiness.

والعظلم: صبغ أحمر، وقيل: هو الوسمة.

And al-'aẓlam: a red dye, and it was said: it is the woad.

العظلم شجيرة من الربة تنبت أخيرا وتدوم خضرتها؛

Al-'aẓlam is a shrub of the high ground that grows late and its greenery endures;

وأخبرني بعض الأعراب أن العظلم هو الوسمة الذكر،

And some of the Bedouins informed me that al-'aẓlam is the male woad,

فقال: وما بأس به، هأنذا أخضب بالعظلم ؛

So he said: And what is wrong with it? Here I am, dyeing with al-'aẓlam;

قال العظلمة شجرة ترتفع على ساق نحو الذراع، ولها فروع في أطرافها كنور الكزبرة، وهي شجرة غبراء.

He said: Al-'aẓlamah is a tree that rises on a stalk about a cubit, and it has branches at its tips like coriander flowers, and it is a dusty-green tree.

وليل عظلم: مظلم، على التشبيه؛

And a dark night ('aẓlam): obscure, by way of simile;

ومن قول الشاعر: وليل عظلم عرضت نفسي، ... وكنت مشيعا رحب الذراع

And from the saying of the poet: And an obscure night I exposed myself, ... and I was a broad-shouldered companion