ع ل ل

Arabic

Etymology

It may be that عَلَّ‎ (ʿalla, “perhaps”) is the original, in a meaning “hopefully not, lest”, so the ailment meanings are things expressed to “hopefully not” appear. That word, in turn, is[1] likely just أَن‎ (ʾan) joined to later shortened لَا‎ (lā). In North Levantine Arabic this لَعَلَّ‎ (laʿalla) is even found[2] in the form لَيِلَّ‎ (layilla) as the conjunction following “to fear, to be afraid”, as English lest and Latin nē.

Root

ع ل ل • (ʿ-l-l)

related to weakness, malleability
related to ailment, defect, emptiness, not at full capacity or at the best condition
related to proferred reasons

Derived terms

Form I: عَلَّ‎ (ʿalla)
- Verbal noun: عَلّ‎ (ʿall), عَلَل‎ (ʿalal)
- Active participle: عَالّ‎ (ʿāll)
- Passive participle: مَعْلُول‎ (maʿlūl)
Form II: عَلَّلَ‎ (ʿallala)
- Verbal noun: تَعْلِيل‎ (taʿlīl)
- Active participle: مُعَلِّل‎ (muʿallil)
- Passive participle: مُعَلَّل‎ (muʿallal)
Form III: عَالَّ‎ (ʿālla), عَالَلَ‎ (ʿālala)
- Verbal noun: مُعَالَلَة‎ (muʿālala), عِلَال‎ (ʿilāl)
- Active participle: مُعَالّ‎ (muʿāll), مُعَالِل‎ (muʿālil)
- Passive participle: مُعَالّ‎ (muʿāll), مُعَالَل‎ (muʿālal)
Form IV: أَعَلَّ‎ (ʾaʿalla)
- Verbal noun: إِعْلَال‎ (ʾiʿlāl)
- Active participle: مُعِلّ‎ (muʿill)
- Passive participle: مُعَلّ‎ (muʿall)
Form V: تَعَلَّلَ‎ (taʿallala)
- Verbal noun: تَعَلُّل‎ (taʿallul)
- Active participle: مُتَعَلِّل‎ (mutaʿallil)
Form VI: تَعَالَّ‎ (taʿālla), تَعَالَلَ‎ (taʿālala)
- Verbal noun: تَعَالُل‎ (taʿālul)
- Active participle: مُتَعَالّ‎ (mutaʿāll), مُتَعَالِل‎ (mutaʿālil)
- Passive participle: مُتَعَالّ‎ (mutaʿāll), مُتَعَالَل‎ (mutaʿālal)
Form VIII: اِعْتَلَّ‎ (iʿtalla)
- Verbal noun: اِعْتِلَال‎ (iʿtilāl)
- Active participle: مُعْتَلّ‎ (muʿtall)
- Passive participle: مُعْتَلّ‎ (muʿtall)

عَلَّة‎ (ʿalla, “defect; reason”)
عُلَالَة‎ (ʿulāla, “thing serving diversion; regalement; solace”)
تَعِلَّى‎ (taʿillā, “pretext”)
عَلِيل‎ (ʿalīl, “sick”)

References

Bravmann, Meïr Max (1977), “Syriac dalmā and related Arabic phenomena; Expressions based on the noun yawm- “day””, in Studies in Semitic Philology (Studies in Semitic Languages and Linguistics; 6), Leiden: E. J. Brill, →ISBN, pages 327–328, 401
Landberg, Carlo, editor (1883) Proverbes et dictons du people arabe. Matériaux pour servir à la connaissance des dialectes vulgaires. I. Proverbes et dictons de la province de Syrie Section de Ṣaydâ‎ (in French), Leiden: Brill, page 158 line 2 and Landberg, Carlo, editor (1883) Proverbes et dictons du people arabe. Matériaux pour servir à la connaissance des dialectes vulgaires. I. Proverbes et dictons de la province de Syrie Section de Ṣaydâ‎ (in French), Leiden: Brill, page 166 last line