المعنى الاصطلاحي

A word whose meaning cannot be understood independently, but something else explains and clarifies it.

الشرح المختصر

"Mushkil" (ambiguous) is a word whose meaning is not clear because it is delicate or it has more than one meaning, and its meaning only becomes clear when a proof or evidence supports it and makes it distinct from other meanings. Forms of "mushkil": 1. A multi-denotative word: such as the word "qur‘" that indicates both menses and purification between two consecutive menses. There should be external evidence based on intellectual reasoning to support either of the two meanings. 2. Two texts that are apparently conflicting: such as the Qur’anic verse in which Allah Almighty said: {He manages [each] matter from the heaven to the earth; then it will ascend to Him in a Day, the extent of which is a thousand years of those which you count.} [Surat as-Sajdah: 5] and the other verse in which Allah Almighty said: {The angels and the Spirit will ascend to Him during a Day the extent of which is fifty thousand years.} [Surat al-Ma‘aarij: 4]

التعريف اللغوي المختصر

"Mushkil": ambiguous, confusing, vague. Original meaning: something becoming intermixed by taking different natures or forms or having various examples or counterparts.

التعريف

What applies to similar things and cannot be determined without clear consideration.