سفن

Root entry · 18 derived lemmas

The root 'سفن' primarily relates to the concept of scraping, peeling, or smoothing. This extends to the literal act of scraping surfaces, the tools used for such actions, and metaphorically to the movement of a ship across water or wind across land.

Derived headwords

سَفَنَverb

1.
to scrapeboth
To scrape or peel something, like the surface of an object.
2.
to smoothboth
To smooth a surface, often by scraping or rubbing.
3.
to wear downclassical
To wear down or erode a surface through friction.

سَفْنnoun

1.
scrapingboth
The act of scraping or peeling.
2.
peelingboth
The process of removing the outer layer of something.

السَّفِينَةnoun

1.
shipboth
A vessel that sails on water, a ship or boat.
2.
arkclassical
A large vessel, often used in a religious context, like Noah's Ark.

سَفَائِنnoun

1.
shipsboth
The plural of 'safina', referring to multiple ships or vessels.

سُفُنnoun

1.
shipsboth
Another plural form for 'safina', meaning ships.

سُفَيْنnoun

1.
shipsclassical
A less common plural form for 'safina', meaning ships.

السَّفَّانnoun

1.
shipbuilderboth
A craftsman who makes or repairs ships.
2.
ship managerclassical
One who manages or oversees ships.

السَّفَانَةnoun

1.
shipbuildingboth
The craft or profession of building ships.

السَّفَنnoun

1.
large axeboth
A large axe or adze used for shaping wood.
2.
adzeboth
A tool used for carving or smoothing wood, similar to an axe.
3.
scraperboth
A tool used for scraping surfaces.

المِسْفَنnoun

1.
adzeboth
A tool for scraping or smoothing wood, similar to 'sufun'.
2.
scraperboth
A tool used for scraping, particularly wood.

السَّفَنnoun

1.
rough skinclassical
A coarse, thick skin, like that of crocodiles, found on limbs.
2.
stone for smoothingclassical
A type of stone used for smoothing or carving.
3.
fish skinclassical
Rough fish skin used for scraping or smoothing.

سَفَنَهُverb

1.
to smooth with rough materialclassical
To smooth something using a rough material like coarse skin or stone.

سَفَنَتِ الرِّيحُ التُّرَابَverb

1.
wind blew dust finelyboth
When the wind blows, making dust fine or scattering it.

السَّوَافِنnoun

1.
wind that blows dustclassical
Winds that blow across the surface of the earth, scattering dust.

سَافِنَةnoun

1.
dust-blowing windclassical
A single instance of a wind that blows dust or sweeps the ground.

سَفُونadjective

1.
constantly blowingclassical
Describing a wind that is always blowing.

سَفَانَةname

1.
female nameclassical
A female given name, notably of the daughter of Hatim al-Ta'i.

سِفْوَانname

1.
valley nameclassical
The name of a valley near Medina, mentioned in historical accounts.

Parallel reading

السفن: القشر.

As-sufun: the peel.

سفن الشيء يسفنه سفنا: قشره؛

Safana shay'an yasfunuhu sufnan: he peeled it;

فجاء خفيا يسفن الأرض بطنه، ... ترى الترب منه لاصقا كل ملصق .

He came stealthily, his belly scraping the ground, ... you see the dust clinging to him most tenaciously.

والسفينة: الفلك لأنها تسفن وجه الماء أي تقشره،

And the ship (safina): the ark, because it scrapes the surface of the water, meaning it peels it,

وقيل لها سفينة لأنها تسفن الرمل إذا قل الماء،

And it was called a ship because it scrapes the sand when water is scarce,

فهي في هذه الحال فعيلة بمعنى مفعولة،

So it is in this case 'fai'ila' in the sense of 'maf'ula',

كأنها تسفن الماء أي تقشره،

As if it scrapes the water, meaning it peels it,

ملأنا البر حتى ضاق عنا، ... وموج البحر نملؤه سفينا

We filled the land until it became too narrow for us, ... and the waves of the sea we fill with ships.

هم رعل الآل أن يكونا ... بحرا يكب الحوت والسفينا

They are the vanguard of the mirage, that it might be ... a sea where the whale and the ship capsize.

كأن حدوجهن على سفين .

As if their camel litters were on a ship.

والسفن: الفأس العظيمة؛

And as-sufun: the large axe;

لأنها تسفن أي تقشر،

Because it scrapes, meaning it peels,

السفن والمسفن والشفر أيضا قدوم تقشر به الأجذاع؛

As-sufun, al-misafan, and ash-shafr are also axes with which logs are peeled;

كما تخوف عود النبعة السفن

As the Naba'a wood is feared by the adze.

وأنت في كفك المبراة والسفن

And in your hand is the sharpener and the adze.

ضربا كنحت جذوع الأثل بالسفن

Striking like the carving of tamarisk trunks with the adze.

السفن: جلد أخشن غليظ كجلود التماسيح يكون على قوائم السيوف،

As-sufun: a rough, thick skin like crocodile skins, found on sword hilts,

وقد سفنه سفنا وسفنه.

And he smoothed it with it, sufnan and sufnan.

السفن قطعة خشناء من جلد ضب أو جلد سمكة يسحج بها القدح حتى تذهب عنه آثار المبراة،

As-sufun is a rough piece of lizard skin or fish skin with which a cup is rubbed until the marks of the sharpener are gone,

وقيل: السفن جلد السمك الذي تحك به السياط والقدحان والسهام والصحاف،

And it is said: As-sufun is the fish skin with which whips, cups, arrows, and bowls are rubbed,

تحك الدوابر حك السفن

The heels rub the rough skin.

وقد يجعل من الحديد ما يسفن به الخشب أي يحك به حتى يلين،

And sometimes iron is made with which wood is scraped, meaning it is rubbed until it softens,

وقيل: السفن جلد الأطوم، وهي سمكة بحرية تسوى قوائم السيوف من جلدها.

And it is said: As-sufun is the skin of the 'atum', a sea fish, from whose skin sword hilts are made.

سفنت الريح التراب تسفنه سفنا: جعلته دقاقا؛

The wind blew the dust, scattering it finely; meaning it made it fine;

إذا مساحيج الرياح السفن

When the winds sweep the dust.

السوافن الرياح التي تسفن وجه الأرض كأنها تمسحه،

As-sawafin are the winds that sweep the face of the earth as if they are wiping it,

تقشره، الواحدة سافنة،

Scraping it, the singular is safina,

وسفنت الريح التراب عن وجه الأرض؛

And the wind blew the dust off the face of the earth;

سفنت إذا هبت على وجه الأرض،

Safanat if it blew across the face of the earth,

وهي ريح سفون إذا كانت أبدا هابة؛

And it is a 'safun' wind if it is always blowing;

سفون الرياح، تترك الليط أغبرا

The constantly blowing winds, leaving the ground dusty.

وبه سمي عبد أو عسيف متكهن كان لعلي بن أبي طالب، رضي الله عنه،

And by this name was called a servant or a hired man, a soothsayer who belonged to Ali bin Abi Talib, may God be pleased with him,

وأخبرني أبو العلاء أنه إنما سمي سفينة لأنه كان يحمل الحسن والحسين أو متاعهما، فشبه بالسفينة من الفلك.

And Abu al-Ala told me that he was only named Safina because he used to carry Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn or their belongings, so he was likened to a ship of the ark.

وسفانة: بنت حاتم طيء، وبها كان يكنى.

And Safana: the daughter of Hatim al-Ta'i, and by her he was kunya-named.

وورد في الحديث ذكر سفوان، بفتح السين والفاء، واد من ناحية بدر بلغ إليه رسول الله، صلى الله عليه وسلم، في طلب كرز الفهري لما أغار على سرح المدينة، وهي غزوة بدر الأولى، والله أعلم.

And in the hadith, the mention of Safwan, with fath on the sin and fa, a valley near Badr, to which the Messenger of God, peace be upon him, reached in pursuit of Karaz al-Fahri when he raided the herds of Medina, and this was the first Battle of Badr, and God knows best.