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مِعْرَاضٌ ذ An arrow having no feathers (As, S, Mgh, O, Msb, K) nor head, (As,) slender at the two extremities, and thick in the middle, (O, K,) being in form like the wooden implement wherewith cotton is separated from its seeds, or is separated and loosened [by striking therewith the string of a bow], (O, TA,) which goes sideways, (Mgh, [in the O and TA, مُسْتَوِيًا, app. a mistranscription, for مُسْتَعْرِضًا,]) striking with its عَرْض [or middle part, unless this be a mistake for عُرْض, or side], (Mgh, [in my copy of which, عرض is without any vowel-sign,] and K,) not with its extremity: (Mgh, K:) sometimes, it strikes with its thick middle part in such a manner that it breaks and crushes what it strikes so that it is like the thing that is beaten to death; and if the object of the chase be near to it, it strikes it with the place of the head thereof: if it make a hole, the game smitten with it may be eaten; but not if it strike with a middle part (بِعَرْضٍ). (O, TA.) -A2- An oblique, indirect, obscure, ambiguous, or equivocal, mode of speech; as when thou askest a man,Hast thou seen such a one?and he, having seen him, and disliking to lie, answers,Verily such a one is seen: ” (Msb:) from عَرَّضَ [q. v.]: (Msb, El-Munáwee: the latter in explaining a trad., q. v. infrà:) i. q. تَوْرِيَةٌ [signifying as above; or the pretending one thing and meaning another; or the using a word, an expression, or a phrase, which has an obvious meaning, and intending thereby another meaning to which it applies but which is contrary to the obvious one]; the original meaning of which is concealment: (Msb:) or language whereof one part resembles another in the meanings: (O, TA: [in the TA immediately follows the exemplification cited above, from the Msb; whence it seems that this explanation is itself somewhat of a معراض, meaning what it does not clearly express:]) or المَعَارِيضُ فِى الكَلَامِ [thus, with the pl. form, in two copies of the S, and in the TA,] signifies التَّوْرِيَةُ بِالشَّىْءِ عَنِ الشَّىْءِ [the pretending, or making believe, a thing instead of another thing]: (S:) and مَعَارِضُ الكَلَامِ and ↓ أَعْرَاضُهُ signify the same as مَعَارِيضُهُ. (TA.) [مَعَارِضُ is a contraction of مَعَارِيضُ, like as مِعْرضٌ is said to be of مِعْرَاضٌ when syn. therewith.] It is said in a prov., (S,) a trad., (TA,) إِِنَّ فِى المَعَارِيضِ لَمَنْدُوحَةً عَنِ الكَذِبِ [Verily, in oblique, indirect, obscure, ambiguous, or equivocal, modes of speech is ample scope, freedom, or liberty, (سَعَةٌ, S,) to avoid lying; or, as is said in the L in art. ندح, that which renders one in no need of lying]. (S, Msb.) One says also, عَرَفْتُهُ فِى مِعْرَاضِ كَلَامِهِ, expl. voce عَرُوضٌ which see in three places, and كَلَامِهِفِى مِعْرَضِ , rejecting the ا: this latter is said by some of the learned to be a metaphorical expression, from مِعْرَضٌ signifying the “ garment in which girls are displayed, ” as though the meaning were (tropical:) [I knew it] in the form, or manner, and guise, and mould, of his speech; but this does not obtain in all kinds of speech; for it may not be said in cases of reviling; indeed it would be bad, in these cases, to use as a metaphor the garment of adornment: therefore the proper way is to say that مِعْرَضٌ is a contraction of مِعْرَاضٌ. (Msb.) One also says الأَلْفَاظُ مَعَارِيضُ المَعَانِى (tropical:) [Words are the robes of meanings]: and this phrase also is [said to be] taken from مِعْرَضٌ signifying the “ garment in which a girl is displayed; ” because words adorn meanings. (TA.)

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