What does « Time / Era » mean in the Quran?

Discover the meaning of the word Time / Era (دهر) in the Quran, with 2 verses in which it appears, and a detailed explanation from Al-Raghib al-Asfahani's Mufradat fi gharib al-Qur'an.

دهر

Time / Era

Root: د - ه - ر

Jurisprudence (fiqh) 2 verses

Updated on 29 May 2026 at 7:00 AM

📖 2 min read

Definition of Time / Era

Al-dahr: originally, the name for the world's duration from beginning to end.

Allah says: 'Is it not time (al-dahr) that destroys us?' (Al-Jâthiya: 24).

Disbelievers attributed death to time, denying resurrection.

Time / Era in the Quran (2)

Meccan: 1 Medinan: 1

Distribution of verses by surah

Al-Jathiya 1

Al-Insan 1

Surah Al-Jathiya : 24 Meccan

﴿وَقَالُوا۟ مَا هِىَ إِلَّا حَيَاتُنَا ٱلدُّنْيَا نَمُوتُ وَنَحْيَا وَمَا يُهْلِكُنَآ إِلَّا ٱلدَّهْرُ وَمَا لَهُم بِذَٰلِكَ مِنْ عِلْمٍ إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا يَظُنُّونَ﴾

And they say, "There is not but our worldly life; we die and live, and nothing destroys us except time." And they have of that no knowledge; they are only assuming.

Surah Al-Insan : 1 Medinan

﴿هَلْ أَتَىٰ عَلَى ٱلْإِنسَٰنِ حِينٌ مِّنَ ٱلدَّهْرِ لَمْ يَكُن شَيْـًٔا مَّذْكُورًا﴾

Has there [not] come upon man a period of time when he was not a thing [even] mentioned?