المعنى الاصطلاحي :

Visiting Al-Masjid Al-Haraam in Makkah to perform special rituals like Tawaaf around the Ka`bah and others.

الشرح المختصر :

"`Umrah" is one of the greatest acts of worship and most meritorious acts of obedience that a Muslim can do to get closer to Allah. It is affirmed according to Shariah texts. It has three pillars: "Ihraam", which is the intention of starting the rituals; "Tawaaf", which is circling the Ka`bah seven times; and "Sa`i", which is walking rapidly between the Safa and Marwah seven times. There are two types of "`Umrah": "Mufradah", which could be performed any day of the year, and "Tamattu`", which could only be performed during the months of Hajj. Some of the fruits of performing "`Umrah": 1. Winning Paradise and salvation from Hellfire. 2. Purification of the soul and body from sins and acts of disobedience to Allah. 3. Proclaiming slavery to Allah alone and disassociation from worshiping other than Him. 4. Freeing oneself from personal desires and pleasures. 5. Strengthening the spirit of love, cooperation, and unity among Muslims. 6. Humiliating the devil and pleasing Allah the Most Merciful. 7. Creating the feeling of equality between people and that piety is the only criterion of preference among them.

التعريف اللغوي المختصر :

"`Umrah": visiting and heading to a populated place. It is derived from "`amr", which means survival and increase, or rise and elevation, like a raised voice and the like. "`Umrah" refers to visiting the Noble Ka`bah. "I`timaar": performing "`Umrah", because it involves populating Al-Bayt-ul-Haraam (the Sacred Mosque in Makkah) and raising the voice with "Talbiyah".