Discover the meaning of the term Nʿm (نعم) in Islamic vocabulary.
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Updated on 11 April 2026 at 1:05 AM
📖 3 min readIt confirms what precedes, whether affirmation or negation; it may also confirm what follows.
'Na'ima ash-shay'' and 'an'amahu': to be soft, pleasant, and ample. 'Na'umat ash-shay'': softness to the touch. 'Na'ima al-'ud': to turn green and flourish. 'Na'ima l-'ish' (living): to be pleasant; 'an'amahu': to enjoy it fully. 'An'ama Allahu fulanan tan'iman': to grant him ease. 'An'ama ash-shay'': to make it soft. At-tan'im: masdar of na'ima. At-Tan'im: a place near Mecca, the nearest of the profane territory's (hill) limits to the city. An-na'ama: the ostrich, masculine and feminine; plural: na'am. An-na'am: camels, cattle, and sheep taken together; if cattle or sheep are alone, na'am is not said. Plural: an'am, masculine and feminine. In the noble Quran: 'inna lakum fi l-an'ami la-'ibratan, nusqikum mimma fi butunihi min bayni farthin wa-damin labanan khalisan sa'ighan li-sh-sharibin' (You have an example in the cattle: We give you drink of what is in their bellies, between filth and blood, pure milk agreeable to drinkers) (An-Nahl, 66); and: 'wa-inna lakum fi l-an'ami la-'ibratan, nusqikum mimma fi butuniha wa-lakum fiha manafi'u kathiratun wa-minha ta'kulun' (And you have an example in the cattle: We give you drink of what is in their bellies; you have many benefits in them and eat of them) (Al-Mu'minun, 21). Camels alone. According to the jurists: camels, cattle, and sheep, male and female. (Al-Ansari). An-nu'm: the opposite of misery. Plural: a'nam. An-na'ma: a verbal noun of at-tana''um and at-tamatta'; it is na'im (felicity). An-na'ma: the favor; plural: a'nam and ni'am. The boon. What you were granted. In the Law: what one delights in lawfully, whether one approves of its outcome or not; or: what benefits in this world and the next together, or in the next. (Al-Utfish). According to al-Jurjani: what one aims at by doing good and benefiting, without a purpose or a recompense. An-nu'ma: the blessing. An-na'im: the blessing. Ease. Wealth: one says 'fulan wasi'u n-na'ma': so-and-so is wealthy.
A reply to speech devoid of argument; said by al-Hirali.
With the ta' and the quiescing of its 'ayn: camels and sheep; it has been said: specific to camels, reverting to al-an'am.
A reply particle whose meaning is assent when it follows a past tense, and promise when it follows a future one; it may also confirm preceding negation. According to the jurists it is like 'bala' (yes indeed) in acknowledgment: if you answer 'na'am' to one who says, 'Do I not have such and such dirhams against you?', the judge takes your words as acknowledgment and binds you to pay the claimed sum.