ظالم

Arabic

Root
ظ ل م (ẓ l m)
12 terms

Etymology

Derived from the active participle of ظَلَمَ (ẓalama).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ðˤaː.lim/

Adjective

ظَالِم • (ẓālim) (feminine ظَالِمَةٌ (ẓālimatun), masculine plural ظَالِمُونَ (ẓālimūna) or ظُلَّام (ẓullām) or ظَلَمَة (ẓalama), feminine plural ظَالِمَات (ẓālimāt))

1. active participle of ظَلَمَ (ẓalama)
   1. unjust; tyrannical, oppressing, iniquitous

      Synonym: غَاشِم (ḡāšim)

      • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 18:35:

        وَدَخَلَ جَنَّتَهُ وَهُوَ ظَالِمٌ لِّنَفْسِهِ قَالَ مَا أَظُنُّ أَن تَبِيدَ هَٰذِهِ أَبَدًا

        wadaḵala jannatahu wahuwa ẓālimun linafsihi qāla mā ʔaẓunnu ʔan tabīda hāḏihi ʔabadan

        And he entered his garden while he was unjust to himself. He said, "I do not think that this will perish - ever.

Declension

Declension of adjective ظَالِم (ẓālim)

Singular	Masculine		Feminine
	basic singular triptote		singular triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Informal	ظَالِم ẓālim	الظَّالِم aẓ-ẓālim	ظَالِمَة ẓālima	الظَّالِمَة aẓ-ẓālima
Nominative	ظَالِمٌ ẓālimun	الظَّالِمُ aẓ-ẓālimu	ظَالِمَةٌ ẓālimatun	الظَّالِمَةُ aẓ-ẓālimatu
Accusative	ظَالِمًا ẓāliman	الظَّالِمَ aẓ-ẓālima	ظَالِمَةً ẓālimatan	الظَّالِمَةَ aẓ-ẓālimata
Genitive	ظَالِمٍ ẓālimin	الظَّالِمِ aẓ-ẓālimi	ظَالِمَةٍ ẓālimatin	الظَّالِمَةِ aẓ-ẓālimati
Dual	Masculine		Feminine
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Informal	ظَالِمَيْن ẓālimayn	الظَّالِمَيْن aẓ-ẓālimayn	ظَالِمَتَيْن ẓālimatayn	الظَّالِمَتَيْن aẓ-ẓālimatayn
Nominative	ظَالِمَانِ ẓālimāni	الظَّالِمَانِ aẓ-ẓālimāni	ظَالِمَتَانِ ẓālimatāni	الظَّالِمَتَانِ aẓ-ẓālimatāni
Accusative	ظَالِمَيْنِ ẓālimayni	الظَّالِمَيْنِ aẓ-ẓālimayni	ظَالِمَتَيْنِ ẓālimatayni	الظَّالِمَتَيْنِ aẓ-ẓālimatayni
Genitive	ظَالِمَيْنِ ẓālimayni	الظَّالِمَيْنِ aẓ-ẓālimayni	ظَالِمَتَيْنِ ẓālimatayni	الظَّالِمَتَيْنِ aẓ-ẓālimatayni
Plural	Masculine		Feminine
	sound masculine plural‎; basic broken plural triptote‎; broken plural triptote in ـَة (-a)		sound feminine plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Informal	ظَالِمِين‎; ظُلَّام‎; ظَلَمَة ẓālimīn‎; ẓullām‎; ẓalama	الظَّالِمِين‎; الظُّلَّام‎; الظَّلَمَة aẓ-ẓālimīn‎; aẓ-ẓullām‎; aẓ-ẓalama	ظَالِمَات ẓālimāt	الظَّالِمَات aẓ-ẓālimāt
Nominative	ظَالِمُونَ‎; ظُلَّامٌ‎; ظَلَمَةٌ ẓālimūna‎; ẓullāmun‎; ẓalamatun	الظَّالِمُونَ‎; الظُّلَّامُ‎; الظَّلَمَةُ aẓ-ẓālimūna‎; aẓ-ẓullāmu‎; aẓ-ẓalamatu	ظَالِمَاتٌ ẓālimātun	الظَّالِمَاتُ aẓ-ẓālimātu
Accusative	ظَالِمِينَ‎; ظُلَّامًا‎; ظَلَمَةً ẓālimīna‎; ẓullāman‎; ẓalamatan	الظَّالِمِينَ‎; الظُّلَّامَ‎; الظَّلَمَةَ aẓ-ẓālimīna‎; aẓ-ẓullāma‎; aẓ-ẓalamata	ظَالِمَاتٍ ẓālimātin	الظَّالِمَاتِ aẓ-ẓālimāti
Genitive	ظَالِمِينَ‎; ظُلَّامٍ‎; ظَلَمَةٍ ẓālimīna‎; ẓullāmin‎; ẓalamatin	الظَّالِمِينَ‎; الظُّلَّامِ‎; الظَّلَمَةِ aẓ-ẓālimīna‎; aẓ-ẓullāmi‎; aẓ-ẓalamati	ظَالِمَاتٍ ẓālimātin	الظَّالِمَاتِ aẓ-ẓālimāti

Descendants

• → Azerbaijani: zalım
• → Kazakh: залым (zalym)
• → Northern Kurdish: zalim
• → Classical Malay: ظاليم (zalim)
  • → Malay: zalim
  • → Indonesian: zalim
• → Classical Persian: ظَالِم (zālim)
  • → Bengali: জালিম (jalim)
  • → Hindustani:

    Hindi: ज़ालिम (zālim)

    Urdu: ظالم

    • → Ushojo: ظالم
    • → Phalura: zaalím

• → Ottoman Turkish: ظالم (zalim)
  • > Turkish: zalim (inherited)
  • > Crimean Tatar: zalım (inherited)
  • → Armenian: զալում (zalum)
• → Swahili: dhalimu
• → Turkmen: zalym
• → Uyghur: زالىم (zalim)
• → Uzbek: zolim
• → Yidgha: ظالم

References

• Baalbaki, Rohi (1995) “ظالم”, in Al-Mawrid: A Modern Arabic-English Dictionary, 7th edition, Beirut: Dar El-Ilm Lilmalayin, →ISBN
• Баранов, Х. К. (2011) “ظالم”, in Большой арабско-русский словарь (Bolʹšoj arabsko-russkij slovarʹ), 11th edition, Москва: Живой язык, →ISBN
• Lane, Edward William (1863) “ظالم”, in Arabic-English Lexicon‎^[1], London: Williams & Norgate
• Wehr, Hans (1960) “ظالم”, in J. Milton Cowan, editor, A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic, 3rd edition, Ithaca, NY: Otto Harrassowitz

Kohistani Shina

Noun

ظالم (zālim)

1. oppressor, unjust, dictator, tyrannical, wrongdoer

Munji

Noun

ظالم (zālim)

1. oppressor

Persian

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic ظَالِم (ẓālim).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [zɑː.lim]

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [zɑː.lɪm]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [zɑː.lɪm]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [zɑː.lɪm]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [zɔː.lim]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [zɒː.lem]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [zɔ.lim]

Readings
Classical reading?	zālim
Dari reading?	zālim
Iranian reading?	zâlem
Tajik reading?	zolim

Adjective

ظالم • (zālim／zâlem)

1. cruel, oppressive, unjust
2. unfeeling, unmerciful
3. inhuman, barbarous

Noun

ظالم • (zālim／zâlem) (sound plural ظالم‌ها or ظالمان, broken plural ظالمون or ظلام or ظلمه)

1. despot, oppressor, tyrant
2. a cruel person

Derived terms

• ظالمانه (zālimāna／zâlemâne)

 

Descendants

• → Bengali: জালিম (jalim)
• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: ज़ालिम (zālim)

  Urdu: ظالم

  • → Ushojo: ظالم
  • → Phalura: zaalím

Further reading

• Bulkin, Carleton (2012) “ظالم”, in Dari-English/English-Dari practical dictionary, 2nd edition, New York: Hippocrene Books, →ISBN, →LCCN, page 249
• Steingass, Francis Joseph (1892) “ظالم”, in A Comprehensive Persian–English dictionary, London: Routledge & K. Paul
• Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (1931–) “ظالم”, in Dehkhoda Dictionary Institute, editors, Dehkhoda Dictionary (in Persian), Tehran: University of Tehran Press
• Hayyim, Sulayman (1934) “ظالم”, in New Persian–English dictionary, Teheran: Librairie-imprimerie Béroukhim
• “ظالم”, in قاموس کبیر افغانستان [qāmūs-i kabīr-i afğānistān, The Great Dictionary of Afghanistan] (in Persian), Afghan Dictionary, 2023

Urdu

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /zɑː.lɪm/

• Audio (Pakistan):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪm

Noun

ظَالِم • (zālim) m or f (feminine ظَالِمَہ (zālima), Hindi spelling ज़ालिम)

1. oppressor, unjust, dictator, tyrannical, wrongdoer

   Synonym: اَتْیاچارِی (atyācārī)

Adjective

ظَالِم • (zālim) (indeclinable, comparative ظَالِمْتَر (zālimtar), superlative اَظْلَم (azlam), Hindi spelling ज़ालिम)

1. oppressive, unfair, tyrannical
2. cruel

Ushojo

Etymology

From Urdu ظالم (zālim).

Noun

ظالم (zālim)

1. oppressor, unjust, dictator, tyrannical, wrongdoer
2. oppressive

Yidgha

Noun

ظالم (zālim)

1. oppressor