What does « To bite / To gnaw » mean in the Quran?

Discover the meaning of the word To bite / To gnaw (قض) in the Quran, with 1 verse in which it appears, and a detailed explanation from Al-Raghib al-Asfahani's Mufradat fi gharib al-Qur'an.

قض

To bite / To gnaw

Root: ق - ض

Jurisprudence (fiqh) 1 verse

Updated on 29 May 2026 at 7:00 AM

📖 1 min read

Definition of To bite / To gnaw

Al-Qaḍḍ refers to the collapse of a wall.

The Almighty says: 'A wall that was about to collapse' (Al-Kahf 77).

Inqāḍḍa al-jidār means the wall cracked and was about to fall.

Al-qaḍḍ is also fine gravel.

To bite / To gnaw in the Quran (1)

Meccan: 1 Medinan: 0

Surah Al-Kahf : 77 Meccan

﴿فَٱنطَلَقَا حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَتَيَآ أَهْلَ قَرْيَةٍ ٱسْتَطْعَمَآ أَهْلَهَا فَأَبَوْا۟ أَن يُضَيِّفُوهُمَا فَوَجَدَا فِيهَا جِدَارًۭا يُرِيدُ أَن يَنقَضَّ فَأَقَامَهُۥ ۖ قَالَ لَوْ شِئْتَ لَتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًۭا﴾

So they set out, until when they came to the people of a town, they asked its people for food, but they refused to offer them hospitality. And they found therein a wall about to collapse, so al-Khidh r restored it. [Moses] said, "If you wished, you could have taken for it a payment."

Words from the same root as To bite / To gnaw

ضيق

Narrow / Difficult

قبض

To contract / To seize

Substitute / Replacement

نقض

To break / To infringe

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