What does « To cut / Measure » mean in the Quran?

Discover the meaning of the word To cut / Measure (قدد) in the Quran, with 5 verses in which it appears, and a detailed explanation from Al-Raghib al-Asfahani's Mufradat fi gharib al-Qur'an.

قدد

To cut / Measure

Root: ق - د - د

Creed (aqida) 5 verses

Updated on 29 May 2026 at 7:00 AM

📖 4 min read

Definition of To cut / Measure

Al-Qadd refers to cutting lengthwise.

The Almighty says: 'And she tore his shirt from behind' (Yusuf 25).

Al-qiddah is the cut piece.

The Almighty says: 'We were of diverse sects' (Al-Jinn 11), meaning different ways.

To cut / Measure in the Quran (5)

Meccan: 5 Medinan: 0

Distribution of verses by surah

Yusuf 4

Al-Jinn 1

Surah Yusuf : 25 Meccan

﴿وَٱسْتَبَقَا ٱلْبَابَ وَقَدَّتْ قَمِيصَهُۥ مِن دُبُرٍ وَأَلْفَيَا سَيِّدَهَا لَدَا ٱلْبَابِ قَالَتْ مَا جَزَآءُ مَنْ أَرَادَ بِأَهْلِكَ سُوٓءًا إِلَّآ أَن يُسْجَنَ أَوْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ﴾

And they both raced to the door, and she tore his shirt from the back, and they found her husband at the door. She said, "What is the recompense of one who intended evil for your wife but that he be imprisoned or a painful punishment?"

Surah Yusuf : 26 Meccan

﴿قَالَ هِىَ رَٰوَدَتْنِى عَن نَّفْسِى وَشَهِدَ شَاهِدٌ مِّنْ أَهْلِهَآ إِن كَانَ قَمِيصُهُۥ قُدَّ مِن قُبُلٍ فَصَدَقَتْ وَهُوَ مِنَ ٱلْكَٰذِبِينَ﴾

[Joseph] said, "It was she who sought to seduce me." And a witness from her family testified. "If his shirt is torn from the front, then she has told the truth, and he is of the liars.

Surah Yusuf : 27 Meccan

﴿وَإِن كَانَ قَمِيصُهُۥ قُدَّ مِن دُبُرٍ فَكَذَبَتْ وَهُوَ مِنَ ٱلصَّٰدِقِينَ﴾

But if his shirt is torn from the back, then she has lied, and he is of the truthful."

Surah Yusuf : 28 Meccan

﴿فَلَمَّا رَءَا قَمِيصَهُۥ قُدَّ مِن دُبُرٍ قَالَ إِنَّهُۥ مِن كَيْدِكُنَّ إِنَّ كَيْدَكُنَّ عَظِيمٌ﴾

So when her husband saw his shirt torn from the back, he said, "Indeed, it is of the women's plan. Indeed, your plan is great.

Surah Al-Jinn : 11 Meccan

﴿وَأَنَّا مِنَّا ٱلصَّٰلِحُونَ وَمِنَّا دُونَ ذَٰلِكَ كُنَّا طَرَآئِقَ قِدَدًا﴾

And among us are the righteous, and among us are [others] not so; we were [of] divided ways.

Words from the same root as To cut / Measure

To fulfill / To deliver

To perish / To vanish

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