Quranic root
هلل
h · l · l
The root centers on raising or proclaiming a voice, and extends by association to things marked by that proclamation or resembling the crescent seen at its announcement.
The principal development runs from vocal proclamation—especially the pilgrimage talbiyah or a declaration—to the new moon, named in connection with people raising their voices upon seeing it. Further extensions include crescent-shaped objects, gleaming forms, and related expressions of sound.
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- 2
- Quran-attested forms
- 2
- Quran senses
- 5
- Quran occurrences
Forms in the Quran
The forms this root actually takes in the Quran. Select one to jump to its senses and examples.
أَهَلَّ
ʾahalla
- Part of speech
- Verb · Form IV
- Form
- IV
- Quran occurrences
- 4 occurrences
Selected examples are shown with the sense they illustrate — chosen to teach that sense, not the complete list of this form’s Quran occurrences.
To pronounce a name over an offering; in the Quranic passive construction, to have an animal consecrated by invoking the name of one other than Allah.
The Quranic form is passive, أُهِلَّ بِهِ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ, and refers to an animal slaughtered or dedicated with a name other than Allah's.
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Selected Quran examples
Quran 2:173word 9
“has been dedicated”
Quran 5:3word 8
“has been dedicated”
هِلَال
hilāl
- Part of speech
- Noun · plural form in the Quran
- Quran occurrences
- 1 occurrence
Selected examples are shown with the sense they illustrate — chosen to teach that sense, not the complete list of this form’s Quran occurrences.
A new moon: the moon in its early visible phase, especially the first part of the lunar month.
The Quranic plural أَهِلَّة in 2:189 refers to recurring new-moon phases as time markers for people and for pilgrimage. The exact early boundary is described variously in the lexical evidence, but the common focus is the moon near its beginning.
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Selected Quran examples
Quran 2:189word 3
“the new moons”
Occurrences in the Quran
Every place this root appears, in Quran order. The first few are shown here.
- 2:173أُهِلَّhas been dedicated
- 2:189ٱلْأَهِلَّةِ ۖthe new moons
- 5:3أُهِلَّhas been dedicated
- 6:145أُهِلَّ[is] dedicated
- 16:115أُهِلَّhas been dedicated
Broader Classical Arabic meanings
Recorded for this root in the Classical lexicons beyond its Quran usage. These are secondary to the Quran senses above.
Show 14 Classical meanings
هِلَال
A crescent-shaped, curved, or similarly named object: a two-pronged spearhead, a kind of snake, a snake's sloughed skin, a small rounded quantity of water at the bottom of a well, the broken end of a millstone, or the part joining the two bends of a pack saddle.
These are established extended uses associated with the form or resemblance of the crescent, rather than the astronomical meaning.
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هُلَاهِل
Abundant, plentiful water.
The term is explained as an extension associated with the sound of water in vigorous flow.
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أَهَلَّ
To raise the voice, proclaim aloud, or make a sound; specifically, to recite the pilgrimage talbiyah aloud or to proclaim a declaration such as “There is no god but Allah.”
الإهلال may refer to raising the voice upon seeing the new moon and is also used more generally for producing a sound; أَهَلَّ بِالْحَجِّ denotes vocal proclamation of the pilgrimage formula.
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اِسْتَهَلَّ
To cry out at birth.
Used of a newborn who begins life by crying aloud.
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اِسْتَهَلَّ
To seek sight of the new moon.
This is the sight-seeking use associated with the beginning of the lunar month.
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أَهَلَّ
For the new moon to appear or be seen.
Used in the construction أَهَلَّ الْهِلالُ, referring to the moon's becoming visible.
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تَهَلَّلَ
For a cloud to gleam or glitter with lightning.
A figurative use based on the visual resemblance of the flash to the crescent.
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مُهَلَّل
Loosely or sparsely woven, of a garment or cloth.
A descriptive adjective for fabric of flimsy or open weave.
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مُهَلْهَل
Thin, attenuated, or lightly composed, especially of poetry.
The adjective is also used in the traditional epithet مُهَلْهِل for a poet associated with making verse less dense.
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هَلْهَلَ
To call out repeatedly while pursuing someone.
Used of repeated shouting in an attempt to overtake or reach a pursued person.
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هَلَّلَ
To draw back or lose courage after charging an opponent.
The idiom describes one who attacks an adversary and then retreats or holds back.
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هَلَا
A call addressed to horses, meaning “feed” or “eat.”
A conventional vocal command directed at horses.
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مُسْتَهَلّ
The first night of a lunar month.
Used in the expression مُسْتَهَلُّ الشَّهْرِ.
- Lane · entry 17139
هَلْ
An interrogative particle used to ask a question and, in rhetorical contexts, to prompt recognition, rebuke, or an implied negation.
This is a grammatical particle discussed alongside the root's homographic material; it is not one of the two supplied QAC form groups.
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Cautions
Points that affect how this root should be read.
The public verb headword أَهَلَّ is the normalized active citation form, while all four supplied Quran occurrences are passive أُهِلَّ.
The boundary of هِلَال is described variously as the first two or first few nights, or more generally the interval near conjunction; the Quranic definition therefore uses the broader early-visible-phase wording.
هَلْ is retained as a separately headed grammatical item because it is explicitly discussed in the supplied lexical evidence, although no corresponding QAC form group is present.
Unassigned or ambiguous evidence
The unexplained poetic phrase containing يَهِلُّ وَيَنْقَعُ in the root discussion does not provide enough context to assign a distinct lexical meaning confidently.