HW: Hans Wehr

Started around WW2 and amended a few times since then, it is a very concise dictionary listing some commonly found sayings. Its drawback is that is focuses more on the language as it is found in print today with all sorts of modern usages, making it difficult to find meanings intended in older texts.

LL/LS: Lane's Lexicon + supplement

This is a monumental work written in the 19th century, where the author has gone through dozens of arabic sources and compiled a lot of relevant examples for each root, from Quran, Hadeeth, poetry and proverbs. It is extremely verbose which sometimes makes it difficult to find the word you're looking for. The main work only goes up til the letter qaf, and the supplement written after the author's death relies on his notes and is therefore unfortunately lacking. Still extremely useful nonetheless. In this website the supplement will close and open automatically for you depending on whether you search for a root before or after the letter qaf respectively.

SG: Steingass

This dictionary seems to fill the gap between Hans Wehr and Lane's Lexicon in that it was also written in the 19th century and also focuses on classical meanings. See for example the translation of 'to plough' under IV of the root thwr (tha wow ra) which is not in Wehr but is present in the lexicon. Biography of the author

BR: Brill

A very good dictionary devoted to the roots found in the Quran giving statistics and translations of every root listed.

PR: A Dictionary and Glossary of the Koran by John Penrice

An older dictionary also devoted to Quranic roots authored in the 19th century.

HA: Hava

A very basic dictionary focusing on some more classical meanings.

AAN: Vocabulary Of The Holy Quran by Dr Abdullah Abbas Nadwi

An extremely useful dictionary of the words in the Qur'an, compiled on the basis of their three-letter roots, allowing one to infer the meanings of almost all the different Qur'anic words by recognizing their root meaning. Examples of uses of the words in the Qur'an are also presented.

The Compiler: Dr. Abdullah Abbas Al-Nadwi is a graduate of the Nadwatul Ulema and an MA &PhD in Linguistic Philosophy, He is advisor to the Rabitah al-Alam al-Islamiyyah, Makkah, Member of the Liguistic Society Cambride and Professor at Umm al-Qura University Makkah.

VI: Verbal Idoms of the Quraan by Mustansir Mir

An idiom is a phrase where the words together have a different meaning to the literal dictionary meaning of the words. For example, in English there are thousands, e.g. "a little bird told me", "a penny for your thoughts", "a picture is worth a thousand words", "add fuel to the fire" etc. Similarly, in Arabic there are also thousands. The Quran uses several hundred, thus to truly understand and study The Quran, it is very important to be able to identify, study and understand its idiomatic expressions. This book does just that. It is a very unique study (I have not come across another book that does the same in English). It is a simple list and reference for The Quran's idiomatic usage. This book is recommended for anyone wishing to undertake a deeper and more accurate study of The Quran.

MGF: Dictionary Of The Holy Quran, by Malik Ghulam Farid, M.A

Caution: This dictionary was written by a Qadiani / Ahmadiyah. However, the dictionary is useful and bias is very limited, it discusses mainly the basic root meaning in detail and also gives effects in shade when some other particles or words are combined with a derivative of such root and it contains unique and useful material on roots.

DHQ: Dictionary of The Holy Qur'an by Abdul Mannan Omar

Caution: This dictionary was written by a Qadiani / Ahmadiyah and bias is visible in some of the roots. However, the dictionary is still useful, and can be studied with caution and additional verification using other dictionaries. It lists multiple meanings associated with the root at the beginning, then he starts listing the various derived forms from the root. Referencing style is also vague e.g. he may list 4 books reference without making distinction which portion he took from which dictionary.

UQW: Urdu Qaamoos ul Waheed

Primarily based on the Arabic dictionary Mu'jam al Waseet which was compiled by a team of scholars in 20th century. Qaamoos ul Waheed is one of the largest available Arabic Urdu dictionaries.

UMR: Urdu Mufraadaat Alfaaz al Qur'an by ar Raghib

This is the Urdu translation of the very famous and useful Mufraadaat Alfaaz al Qur'an al Kareem by Raaghib Asfahaany.

UMS: Urdu Mukhtaar us Sihah

Mukhtaar us Sihaah written by al Raazi is a highly condensed abridgement of As Sihaah by Al-Jawhary with minor additions by him. Many words used in the Qur'an or Hadith were chosen by al Raazi for inclusion in this book. This is the Urdu translation of the book.

UMJ: Urdu al Munjid

This is the Urdu translation by Ismat abu Saleem of the famous Arabic dictionary al Munjid written by Fr. Louis Ma’luf al-Yassu’i and Fr. Bernard Tottel al-Yassu’i, which has been printed, published, and distributed by a Catholic printing house since 1908. The Arabic dictionary has received some criticism from Muslim Scholars though it is still widely used. Though this is an Urdu translation by a Muslim and appears to have removed many of the concerns, caution is still advised. In Urdu, Al Munjid has been the source of 3 books. Misbaah ul Lughaat was actually based on this dictionary in which the translator removed some content and added some of his own content. The edition used in Almanac is claimed to be the 1st complete Urdu translation of Al Munjid.

ULQ: Urdu Lughaat ul Qur'an by GA Parwez

This Arabic Urdu dictionary of the Qur'an has quoted material from some important works and many entries contain useful material. However, since the author is a Sunnah rejector, he has inserted baseless material in a few of the roots. Caution is advised. It contains some rare and useful material but this caution and his bias should be kept in mind.

UQA: Qaamoos alfaaz o Istelehaat e Qur'an

This dictionary is extracted from the notes on words given in the large Urdu Tafseer of The Qur'an Tadabbur e Qur'an by Amin Ahsan Islahi. The focus appears to be on giving meaning based on usage of the word in language.

UQQ: Urdu Qaamoos Alfaaz al Qur'an al Kareem

Urdu Translation of Vocabulary of The Holy Qur'an by Abdullah Abbas Nadwi. Gives meanings of the roots and their related words. A brief yet useful book. Also gives brief grammatical notes.

LA: Lisan al-'Arab

The Lisān al-ʿArab (لسان العرب, "The Arab Tongue") was completed by Ibn Manzur in 1290. Occupying 20 printed book volumes (in the most frequently cited edition), it is the most well-known dictionary of the Arabic language,[3] as well as one of the most comprehensive. Ibn Manzur compiled it from other sources, to a large degree.

TLA: Tasheeh Lisan ul Arab (Arabic)

This is a short book which has posted some corrections to few of the entries of Lisaan ul Arab. This can be used along with Lisaan ul Arab for the few roots it has touched.

AMJ: Al-Munjid

It is said that in the Arab World al-Munjid is the standard Arabic-Arabic dictionary used.It includes a chapter of Arabic saying at the end of the book as well as additional color images, maps and tables.

BDW: Hind/Badawi (Egyptian)

This root based dictionary enjoys glowing reviews by those who wish to study this particular dialect of Arabic.

AMR: Mufradat al Quran by Raghib (Arabic)

The most famous Dictionary of The Qur'an in Arabic. Arabic English Dictionary of Qur'anic Usage has mentioned in its introduction: "Indeed, 'al Raghib was of the opinion, expressed in the introduction to his book, that of all disciplines needed for the study of the Qur'an those concerned with the language itself should come first, and, of these, those concerned with the meanings of Qur'anic vocabulary should be considered of primary importance." He has usually 1st given the primary meanings of words and then quoted the Qur'anic Ayaat along with further explanation of the words used.

ASB: Asaas al Balaaghah by Zamakhshari (Arabic)

This is a short dictionary by Zamakhshari who is famous for his Qur'an Tafsir Kashaaf and Grammar work Mufassal. In Asaas al Balaaghah, while briefly explaining the words, he has discussed primary meanings and secondary meanings of words. He has written unique content in explanation of words.

AUH: Umdat ul Huffaaz (Arabic)

He has also written a detailed Tafsir by the name of Ad Durr ul Masoon in which he has exlpained the words used in the Ayat in some detail. In this dictionary he has explained the words under their roots using Qur'an , Ahaadith and Poetic verses.

MSB: Misbaah ul Muneer by Fuyyumi (Arabic)

A compact Arabic to Arabic dictionary. Regarding it Lane said in his preface: "...forming a most valuable companion and supplement to the larger lexicons . Notwithstanding its title, it comprises a very large collection of classical words and phrases and significations of frequent occurrence; in many instances with more clear and full explanations than I have found elsewhere. I have therefore constantly drawn from it in composing my own lexicon."

MHT: Muheet al-Muheet (Arabic)

It was compiled in the last century. Although this book is not among the large books, it is still very useful. The primary source of this book is Qaamoos ul Muheet but the author has also consulted other important books while compiling this dictionary. He has tried to present the important material regarding the words in this dictionary. An attempt to combine the best of Qaamoos ul Muheet and his own research by Butras Bustani in a compact manner.

IMN: Indonesia, Al-Munawwir, Kamus Arab-Indonesia Terlengkap, oleh KH. Ahmad Warson Munawwir

Kamus Al-Munawwir merupakan sebuah kamus bahasa Arab-Indonesia yang merupakan kamus bahasa Arab terlengkap, paling tebal dan legendaris di Indonesia. Kamus ini telah banyak digunakan oleh para penuntut ilmu (thullabul Ilmi) untuk mengetahui arti kosakata Arab ke dalam bahasa Indonesia juga sebagai acuan pada bendahara kosakata terjemahan kitab kuning. Kamus ini termasuk kategori best seller, karena telah dicetak berulangkali dan dicetak sekitar 10 ribu-15 ribu eksemplar pertahun. Untuk melengkapinya kamus ini kemudian diikuti edisi Indonesia-Arab-nya. Link: http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Munawwir_(kamus)

MAR: Kamus Idris Al-Marbawi (Arabic-Malay)

Compiled by Sheikh Muhammad Idris Abdul Rauf Al-Marbawia, a Malay scholar born in Saudi Arabia. He spent most of his life facilitating the efforts of learning the Arabic books in many madrasa in Malaysia and finally in Al Azhar University in Egypt. Then, he began to compile the Arabic/Malay dictionary or more recognizable as Kamus Idris al-Marbawi, published in 1937.

ENS: Ensiklopedia Al-Quran (Malay): Kajian Kosa Kata, Quraish Shihab

This book is produced in an effort to explain the Qur'anic vocabulary and its guidance equipped with an explanation of semantic meanings. The book is based on the criticism of the Qur’anic experts who found an abundant confusion in the exegetical works made by the exegetes in understanding the Qur’anic vocabulary. The idea for this book was inspired in 1992 by Shihab as a reference for religious leaders, educators and scholars. To achieve these goals, the research team was formed comprising of a chief researcher and authors.

The chief researcher was selected from among the Qur’anic experts; in this case Shihab was elected to assume the position. The group of organizers were supervised by Abd. Hafizh Dasuki and assisted by Ahmad Thib Raya. The authors consisted of the lecturers in the Islamic State University and Higher Education Institution who were studying at the post-graduate level IAIN Syarif Hidayatullah, Jakarta and IAIN Sunan Kalijaga, Yogyakarta.

In 1997, the trial edition of the Qur’anic Encyclopaedia was published, entitled Ensiklopedi Al-Qur’an: Kajian Kosa kata dan Tafsirnya [An Encyclopaedia of the Qur’an: Study of the Vocabulary and its Exegesis]. The book is dissected and studied extensively in an academic symposium to which the participants were invited. Many of the Qur’anic experts attended along with intellectuals and Islamic civil society activists. Through criticism and suggestions on the trial edition, a group of researchers sought to perfect the book. After a relatively long time as well as the addition of new titles, a new organizers group were formed to oversee the existing data and prepare for publication. Members of the group in question include Shihab (Chief), Nasaruddin Umar and Muchlis Hanafi (Vice Chairman), Sahabuddin, Yusuf Baihaqi, and Irfan Abdullah and Salim Masud Rusydi Cahyono (Members).

The result is a published on collaboration with the Lentera Hati publisher, the Centre of Qur’anic Study and Yayasan Paguyuban Ikhlas in 2007. An initial publication of 485 was increased to 1050 units. The book is arranged alphabetically by following the Indonesian language transliteration of the Arabic language. Whereas the form of the selected word is determined based on its usage in the Qur’an and not the original or root of the word (though the original word was deliberated and discussed with a variety of regular derivations). This method is selected for the convenience of readers

Source

KAZ: Kazimirski, French Dictionnaire Arabe-Francais

This work has been the standard dictionary for translation of Arabic into French for many years. It contains most of the known roots of the Arabic language and also includes the dialects of Algiers and Morocco. Albert de Biberstein Kazimirski (1808-1887) was a lexicographer of repute in the nineteenth century. Among his many accomplishments was the translation of the Quran into French and the production of multiple dictionaries.

MAW: al-Mawrid 7th ed. by Rowhi Baalbaki

This is a modern and compact Arabic English dictionary. It is arranged according to words instead of roots and is a great resource for both beginners and advanced learners of Modern Arabic.

LQN: Lughaat ul-Quran by Abdur Rasheed Noumani (Urdu)

The largest Arabic Urdu Dictionary of The Qur'an of about 2161 pages, but it is arranged according to words instead of roots. It gives meanings and explanations of the words along with brief grammatical information. It has explained some of the important words in great detail.