Quranic root
نكر
n · k · r
A core contrast with familiar recognition: what the heart does not settle into accepting or the tongue does not acknowledge.
From unfamiliarity and non-recognition, the root develops meanings of denial, rejection, disapproval, strangeness, alteration into an unknown state, difficulty, and—in some Classical branches—cunning or strategic intelligence.
- Maqāyīs · row 4743
- Mufradāt · row 1484
- 8
- Quran-attested forms
- 13
- Quran senses
- 37
- Quran occurrences
Forms in the Quran
The forms this root actually takes in the Quran. Select one to jump to its senses and examples.
نَكِرَ
nakira
- Part of speech
- Verb · Form I
- Form
- I
- 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.
To fail to recognize; to find someone or something unfamiliar.
In the Quranic scene, the visitors are not recognized or accepted as familiar. The sense concerns unfamiliarity and lack of recognition, rather than necessarily a deliberate verbal denial.
- Mufradāt · row 1484
- Lane · entry 44498
Selected Quran examples
Quran 11:70word 7
“he felt unfamiliar of them”
نَكَّرَ
nakkara
- Part of speech
- Verb · Form II
- Form
- II
- 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.
To alter or disguise something so that it is not recognized.
The Quranic construction concerns changing an object into an unfamiliar or unrecognizable state; it does not mean merely grammatical indefiniteness.
- Lane · entry 44499
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
Quran 27:41word 2
“Disguise”
أَنْكَرَ
ʾankara
- Part of speech
- Verb · Form IV
- Form
- IV
- Quran occurrences
- 3 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 fail to recognize or know; to be unacquainted with someone or something.
This is the recognition-based sense, contrasted with knowing or recognizing. It can describe an object of perception or an object held in the mind.
- Lane · entry 44501
- Mufradāt · row 1484
To deny, disavow, or refuse to acknowledge something.
The denial may be verbal or inward. The sources distinguish genuine lack of recognition from a tongue's denial of something already present in the mind, in which case the denial is false.
- Lane · entry 44501
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
To regard something as strange, extraordinary, improbable, or unacceptable.
This shade can involve regarding conduct as strange or disapproved, rather than simply failing to identify it.
- Lane · entry 44501
أَنْكَرُ
ʾankaru
- Part of speech
- Adjective · Elative
- 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.
More or most evil, abominable, or objectionable.
An elative adjective comparing the reprehensibility of things; in the Quranic expression it marks the extreme degree.
- Lane · entry 44516
Selected Quran examples
Quran 31:19word 8
“(the) harshest”
مُنْكَر
munkar
- Part of speech
- Passive participle · substantivized
- Quran occurrences
- 18 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.
Something rejected as unacceptable, especially an act, saying, or conduct judged bad, evil, forbidden, indecent, or otherwise objectionable.
In moral and legal usage, the noun denotes what sound judgment or revealed law rejects. As a passive-participle adjective it can also describe what is denied or regarded as strange.
- Lane · entry 44517
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
Quran 5:79word 5
“wrongdoing”
Quran 16:90word 12
“and the bad”
Something unrecognized, unknown, or not known as familiar.
This recognition-based use is distinct from the moral noun meaning a wrong or forbidden act.
- Lane · entry 44517
Selected Quran examples
Quran 15:62word 4
“unknown”
مُنْكِر
munkir
- Part of speech
- Active participle
- 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.
One who does not recognize or is unacquainted with someone or something.
The active participle may describe failure to recognize a person, not merely opposition to a proposition.
- Lane · entry 44501
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
Quran 12:58word 9
“knew him not”
One who denies, rejects, or refuses to acknowledge something.
The rejection may be expressed in speech or embodied in an inward refusal or disapproval.
- Lane · entry 44501
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
Quran 21:50word 7
“rejecters”
Quran 16:22word 9
“refuse”
نَكِير
nakīr
- Part of speech
- Noun
- Quran occurrences
- 5 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.
Denial or disavowal.
It can denote denial made in response to an accusation or claim.
- Lane · entry 44514
Selected Quran examples
Quran 42:47word 21
“denial”
Manifestation of disapproval, especially through a punitive change or reversal of conditions.
In the Quranic expression concerning divine action, the disapproval is manifested by changing favor into trial, life into destruction, or prosperity into ruin; it is consequently rendered in context as rejection or punishment.
- Lane · entry 44514
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
Quran 67:18word 8
“My rejection”
Quran 22:44word 11
“My punishment”
نُكْر
nukr
- Part of speech
- Adjective
- 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.
Terrible, heinous, difficult, or severe.
The adjective describes an event, punishment, or affair as exceptionally objectionable or hard to endure. نُكُر is a Quran-attested vocalic variant of this branch.
- Lane · entry 44506
- Mufradāt · row 1484
Selected Quran examples
Quran 18:74word 16
“evil”
Quran 18:87word 13
“terrible”
Quran 54:6word 8
“terrible”
Quran 65:8word 14
“terrible”
Occurrences in the Quran
Every place this root appears, in Quran order. The first few are shown here.
- 3:104ٱلْمُنكَرِ ۚthe wrong
- 3:110ٱلْمُنكَرِthe wrong
- 3:114ٱلْمُنكَرِthe wrong
- 5:79مُّنكَرٍۢwrongdoing
- 7:157ٱلْمُنكَرِthe wrong
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 20 Classical meanings
نَكُرَ
To possess cunning, sagacity, or skill joined with craft and foresight.
A Classical Form-I branch concerning intelligence or strategic cleverness.
- Lane · entry 44498
نَكُرَ
To become disapproved, bad, evil, abominable, or disallowed.
Used of a thing or affair that comes to be regarded as objectionable.
- Lane · entry 44498
نَكُرَ
To become difficult, hard, arduous, or severe.
A Form-I verbal branch describing an affair's increasing difficulty or severity.
- Lane · entry 44498
نَاكَرَ
To engage in mutual guile, outwitting, deception, or circumvention; by extension, to contend in hostility or fight.
The hostile sense is an extended use of reciprocal guile and contest.
- Lane · entry 44500
إِنْكَار
Changing or altering a thing, especially changing what is regarded as objectionable.
This verbal-noun branch is distinct from denial and from the Quranic punitive manifestation denoted by نَكِير.
- Lane · entry 44501
أَنْكَرَ
To be extraordinarily cunning or intelligent, with craft and foresight.
Occurs in the idiomatic exclamation مَا أَنْكَرَهُ and related expressions.
- Lane · entry 44501
تَنَكَّرَ
To change or alter oneself or one's appearance into an unknown state; to disguise oneself.
The change may be outward, in countenance or clothing, or inwardly a change from a pleasing to a disliked condition; a morose manner is also included.
- Lane · entry 44502
- Lane · entry 44519
تَنَاكَرَ
To feign ignorance or pretend not to know.
A reciprocal Form-VI construction of affected non-recognition.
- Lane · entry 44503
تَنَاكَرَ
To act with mutual hostility.
A reciprocal hostile-use branch, distinct from merely feigning ignorance.
- Lane · entry 44503
اِسْتَنْكَرَ
To inquire about or seek to understand something that one disapproves.
The inquiry may challenge, confirm, or reject an opinion expressed by another person.
- Lane · entry 44504
نُكْر
Cunning or sagacity, especially intelligence mixed with craft and foresight.
A Classical nominal branch, distinct from the Quranic adjective meaning terrible or severe.
- Lane · entry 44506
نَكَر
Difficulty, hardness, arduousness, or severity.
A noun derived from the Form-I branch meaning to become difficult.
- Lane · entry 44507
نَكِر
Cunning, intelligent, skilful, or knowing.
Applied as an epithet to a person possessing intelligence with craft and foresight.
- Lane · entry 44509
نَكِر
One who disapproves of what is bad, evil, abominable, or foul.
This is an agent-noun use of the lexical branch, not the Quranic active participle headword مُنْكِر.
- Lane · entry 44509
نَكَرَة
Ignorance, denial, or disapproval.
A verbal noun associated with إِنْكَار and used for a condition of non-recognition or rejection.
- Lane · entry 44511
نَكِرَة
Ignorance of a thing; lack of knowledge, the opposite of معرفة.
The grammatical sense of an indefinite noun is a separate technical use and is not included here.
- Lane · entry 44512
نَكْرَاء
A calamity or a severe and rigorous turn of fortune.
A feminine nominal branch describing adversity or severity of circumstances.
- Lane · entry 44513
نَكِير
A strong fortress.
A separate Classical noun from the denial and punitive-change senses of نَكِير.
- Lane · entry 44514
مُنْكَر
The name of one of the two angels said to question the dead in the grave.
A proper-name use in traditional religious terminology, distinct from the common noun مُنْكَر.
- Lane · entry 44517
يَنْكُور
Wrong-directed or deviating, as of a road or way.
Used in the expression طَرِيقٌ يَنْكُورٌ.
- Lane · entry 44521
Cautions
Points that affect how this root should be read.
The Quranic passive participle مُنْكَر has both a moral sense of rejected or evil conduct and a recognition-based sense of unknown or unrecognized; context determines the branch.
نَكِير has distinct Quranic uses for denial and for manifested divine disapproval through punitive change. The cited Lane Quran notation has not been converted into additional modern verse locations.