Arabic word sheet
أَجَلٌ
Term, appointed period
- Type
- noun
- Root
- ء ج ل
Meaning and usage
Term, appointed period
The time assigned to something, and the moment when that time runs out. Said of a contract, a wait, a commitment.
اِنْتَهَى أَجَلُ الْعَقْدِ هَذَا الشَّهْرَ.
The term of the contract ended this month.
Due date
The date on which a debt or a payment falls due. Said in trade and lending.
سَدَّدَ سَامِي الْقَرْضَ قَبْلَ أَجَلِهِ.
Sami repaid the loan before its due date.
End of life
The span allotted to a person's life, and the moment it comes to an end. Said of death seen as a term that arrives.
مَاتَ الشَّيْخُ حِينَ حَانَ أَجَلُهُ.
The old man died when his time came.
Plural
آجَالٌ
Word family
What the root means ء ج ل
The root carries the idea of a moment fixed in advance, at which something is to happen or come to an end. From it come the term, what is put off until later and postponing.
to postpone
أَجَّلَ
deferred, later
آجِلٌ
postponed
مُؤَجَّلٌ
postponement
تَأْجِيلٌ
Synonyms
duration, period
مُدَّةٌ
It names the stretch of time itself, without the idea of a limit set in advance that the headword carries.
term, limit in time
أَمَدٌ
A very close literary word, which stresses the furthest point of a span of time rather than an agreed date.