المعنى الاصطلاحي

Causing something to occur, whether it is an act or the like, and whether it is created or generated by the Lord, the Almighty, or done by people.

الشرح المختصر

"Fi‘l" (doing): Allah, the Almighty, informed us that He is "the doer of what He wills", which is a manifestation of His perfect power and unchallengeable will, since everything is in His Hand, and none can challenge or oppose whatever He effects. "Fa‘āl" means the one who always does. This attribute is a perfection, because the one who does is more perfect than the one who does nothing. The lack of this attribute means a lack of perfection, which is impossible for Allah, the Almighty. "Fi‘l" (doing) is an essential sign of life, and every living thing is a doer. Allah, the Almighty, is the Ever Living, so He is also ever doing, because His life has never ceased and He will never cease to be living. The difference between the living and the dead is "fi‘l". Allah is living, so He must be a doer. It is impossible for Allah, the Almighty, to stop "fi‘l", whether in the past or in the present, so He is always a doer, and His actions have no beginning or end. Religious texts state that acts of people are done by them with their free choice and will and that they are not acts of Allah, the Almighty, despite the fact that He created and effected them. Anything contradicting this rule actually contradicts reason. Ahl-us-Sunnah believe that a slave has a real, rather than metaphoric, power, will, choice, and ability to do, and they also agree that "fi‘l" is different from the act itself. These acts are really created and effected by Allah, the Almighty. The Lord, Glorified and Exalted be He, has the knowledge, power, will, and ability to create, and the people do their "fi‘l", movements, and stillness. They are the Muslims who actually pray, stand, and sit, while Allah, the Almighty, is the One Who destined these acts for them, the One Who has the power to create such acts, and the One Who willed them. The "fi‘l" and will of people are subject to the will of Allah, the Almighty. Therefore, they do not will or do anything except that Allah, the Lord of the worlds, wills it.

التعريف اللغوي المختصر

"Fi‘l": derived from the verb "fa‘ala", which means doing something. It also refers to causing something to occur, whether it is "‘amal" (an act) or anything else. Therefore, it is more specific than "‘amal". Alternatively, it may be an metonymy of any "‘amal", whether transitive or intransitive.