ض ح ل

Root entry · 13 derived lemmas

This root primarily concerns the concept of water being shallow, scarce, or thin. It extends to describe places where water is scarce, and metaphorically, to things that are few or meager.

Derived headwords

الضحلnoun

1.
shallow waterboth
Water that is scarce, thin, and shallow, not deep. It can be found in springs, wells, or pools.
2.
scarcity of waterclassical
The state of having little water, or a place where water is scarce.

الضحضاحnoun

1.
shallow waterclassical
Water that is scarce and shallow, covering the ground thinly. It is considered a broader term than 'al-dahil'.

متضحضحadjective

1.
shallowclassical
Describing water that is shallow or scarce.

الضاحيةnoun

1.
shallow waterclassical
In the context of the root, it refers to shallow water.
2.
nearby placeclassical
A place that is close by.

أضحالnoun

1.
shallow watersclassical
Plural of 'al-dahil', referring to shallow bodies of water.

ضحولnoun

1.
shallow watersclassical
Plural of 'al-dahil', referring to shallow bodies of water.

ضحالnoun

1.
shallow watersclassical
Plural of 'al-dahil', referring to shallow bodies of water.

أتان الضحلnoun

1.
rock exposed by shallow waterclassical
A rock that is partially submerged and partially exposed due to shallow water.

المضحلnoun

1.
place with little waterclassical
A location where water is scarce or shallow.
2.
mirageclassical
A phenomenon resembling a mirage due to the scarcity of water in a place.

ضحل الماءverb

1.
water became shallowboth
The water became thin and shallow.
2.
water became scarceboth
The water diminished in quantity.

ضحلت الغدرverb

1.
pools became shallowboth
The water in the pools became shallow and scarce.

ضاحلadjective

1.
shallowclassical
Describing water that is thin and has receded.

خيركnoun

1.
your scarcityclassical
Used metaphorically to mean 'how little of your good deeds' or 'how scarce your goodness is'.

Parallel reading

الماء القليل، وهو الضحضاح

The scarce water, which is the shallow water.

هو الماء الرقيق على وجه الأرض، لا عمق له

It is the thin water on the surface of the earth, having no depth.

قيده بعضهم بأن يظهر منه القعر

Some have restricted it by saying that the bottom becomes visible in it.

بل الضحضاح أعم من الضحل، لأنه فيما قل أو كثر

Rather, 'al-dahdah' is more general than 'al-dahil', because it applies to what is little or much.

وقيل: الضحل الماء القليل، يكون في العين، والبئر، والجمة، ونحوها

And it was said: 'Al-dahil' is scarce water, found in a spring, a well, a pool, and the like.

وأنشد ابن بري لابن مقبل: علاجيم لا ضحل ولا متضحضح

And Ibn al-Barri recited for Ibn Muqbil: 'Vast waters, neither shallow nor scarce.'

وفي الحديث في كتابه لأكيدر دومة: ولنا الضاحية من الضحل

And in the Hadith, in his letter to Ukhaidir of Dumat al-Jandal: 'And we have the shallow water from the scarce water.'

وهو الماء القليل أو القريب المكان

And it is the scarce water or the nearby place.

ومننه أتان الضحل، لأنه لا يغمرها به لقلته

And among them is 'atan al-dahil', because it does not submerge it due to its scarcity.

أتان الضحل: الصخرة بعضها غمره الماء وبعضها ظاهر

'Atan al-dahil': The rock, some of which is submerged by water and some of which is exposed.

والمضحل، كمقعد: المكان يقل فيه الماء

And 'al-mudhal', like 'maq'ad': The place where water is scarce.

وبه يشبه السراب

And it is likened to a mirage.

حسبت يوما غير قر شاملا ينسج غدرانا على مضاحلا

I thought a day of non-rain, encompassing, weaving pools over shallow places.

ضحل الماء: رق، وقل

The water became shallow: it became thin and scarce.

وضحلت الغدر: قل ماؤها

And the pools became shallow: their water became scarce.

غدير ضاحل: رق ماؤه، فذهب

A shallow pool: its water became thin, and it disappeared.

إن خيرك: أي ما أقله

'Your goodness': meaning, how little of it.