Qur’anic root ض ي ع

1. The semantic core and usage in early Arabic

Something that existed being lost

Arabic ضَاعَ الشَّيْءُ means that something was lost, wasted or became unavailable. This may happen through being misplaced, perishing or being left without care.

Lexical sources record ضَيَاع and ضَيْعَة for perishing and loss. ضَاعَ الشَّيْءُ يَضِيعُ describes something being lost, whereas أَضَاعَهُ attributes its loss or waste to someone.

The two constructions differ clearly. ضَاعَ الْمَالُ describes property being lost without necessarily identifying an agent. أَضَاعَ الْمَالَ identifies someone as the agent who let the property go to waste.

This does not mean that every instance of wasting something involves a conscious decision and an intention to destroy. Someone may waste something through inattention, negligence or inability to care for it; they may also deliberately destroy it. The verb itself does not specify intention or degree of blame in every use.

The meaning is not confined to misplacing a material object. Property that perishes, an opportunity that is missed and a right that is disregarded can all belong to this semantic field, though the manner of their loss differs.

Neglecting an obligation in pre-Islamic poetry

A poem attributed to Qays ibn Zuhayr al-ʿAbsī, a poet and prominent pre-Islamic Arab, says:

«لَعَمْرُكَ مَا أَضَاعَ بَنُو زِيَادٍ
ذِمَارَ أَبِيهِمْ فِيمَنْ يُضِيعُ»

“By your life, the sons of Ziyād did not neglect what their father entrusted them to protect, among those who neglect it.”

ذِمَار here denotes something a person or group is responsible for protecting: honour, a right, a covenant or what must be defended.

The poet praises the sons of Ziyād for preserving their family responsibility. This verse focuses on protecting honour and obligation; ذمار itself can encompass both material and nonmaterial things requiring protection. The subject is a right that could have been lost through disloyalty or failure.

This evidence shows that أَضَاعَ was used for responsibility and rights in early Arabic. Wasting or neglecting can mean failing to preserve what someone is expected to safeguard or respect.

The poem is transmitted in early literary collections under Qays ibn Zuhayr’s name. As with other transmitted poetic evidence from that period, the poet’s date needs to be distinguished from the dates of the verse’s recording and transmission.

Neglecting a relationship or another person’s right

A poem attributed to Labīd ibn Rabīʿah also says:

«وَقُولَا هُوَ الْمَرْءُ الَّذِي لَا خَلِيلَهُ
أَضَاعَ وَلَا خَانَ الصَّدِيقَ وَلَا غَدَرْ»

“You two, say: he was the man who did not neglect his close friend, betray his friend or break faith.”

أَضَاعَ here concerns treatment of a friend. Neglecting a friend does not mean misplacing his body; it concerns abandoning him, failing in his rights or losing a relationship that should be honoured.

The association of أَضَاعَ, خَانَ and غَدَرَ also matters. These three words are close within the field of mistreating another person, but are not exact synonyms. Betrayal and treachery emphasise specific features of conduct, while إضاعة can include neglecting and abandoning another’s right.

Labīd was a poet who lived both before Islam and after its emergence. This verse belongs to a piece in which he tells his two daughters how to remember him after his death. Its exact date was not established in this investigation. It therefore witnesses the root’s use in poetry attributed to Labīd, but his lifespan alone cannot prove that it was composed before the Qur’an or during the period of revelation itself.

ضَيْعَة: work, livelihood and property

Lexical sources also record another use of ضَيْعَة for a person’s occupation, work or means of livelihood. Livestock keeping, farming, making equipment, weaving and other ways of earning a living could be called someone’s ضيعة.

In another use, ضَيْعَة denotes land, a garden or income-producing property. In later usage, this meaning became particularly familiar for agricultural estates.

An explanatory connection can be drawn between these uses and loss: an occupation, livestock or land requiring care may be lost or wasted when abandoned. This resemblance, however, does not establish a definite history of how ضيعة acquired its name.

Lexical accounts distinguish the use of ضيعة for property among urban populations from its Arabic use for a craft or occupation. That report of differing usage does not itself date the origin of the property sense. Nor does a word’s inclusion in Arabic dictionaries establish that all its meanings were equally common before the Qur’an.

These uses help explain the language’s breadth, but the Qur’an contains neither ضيعة meaning an occupation nor ضيعة meaning property. All Qur’anic forms of this root belong to the verb أَضَاعَ.

2. Qur’anic أَضَاعَ: being wasted and causing waste

All ten Qur’anic occurrences are Form IV verbs. Arabic أَضَاعَ can mean wasting, losing or causing something to be lost.

What is wasted is usually the verb’s object. In أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ, الصَّلَاةَ is the object: ṣalāt is what they neglected. In لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ, أَجْرَ is the object, and the verse concerns reward not being wasted.

The difference between these sentences extends beyond the agent. The objects also differ: ṣalāt in one and reward in the other. The root’s meaning must be kept distinct from the meanings of these objects.

Nine of the ten Qur’anic occurrences are in negative constructions, expressing that The God does not let something go to waste. The only affirmative occurrence is Maryam 19:59, which attributes neglect of ṣalāt to a group of people.

This distribution shows that the Qur’an most often uses the root to affirm that faith, deeds and reward are not wasted with The God. The verb’s meaning nevertheless belongs to the same family in both directions: something that should remain, be respected or reach its result is lost, or is prevented from being wasted.

Letting something go to waste differs from its being invalid from the outset. Work may have been correctly performed, yet its worker might not be given the reward: in that hypothetical case, the reward has been wasted. Alternatively, someone might abandon a responsibility so completely that the action itself disappears or is not properly performed.

These are different situations. In the Qur’an, the kind of waste is understood through the verb’s object and sentence context.

3. وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُضِيعَ إِيمَانَكُمْ: faith in the account of the qiblah

Al-Baqarah 2:143 says:

«وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُضِيعَ إِيمَانَكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ بِالنَّاسِ لَرَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ»

“The God will never let your faith go to waste. The God is indeed most compassionate and merciful towards people.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:143; the end of the verse)

This expression occurs among the verses about the qiblah. The Qur’an discusses the qiblah the Prophet previously faced, and those who follow the Messenger in contrast to those who turn back on their heels.

The difficulty this presented for some of those addressed is then mentioned, followed by وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُضِيعَ إِيمَانَكُمْ.

What will not be wasted?

The object of لِيُضِيعَ is إِيمَانَكُمْ: your faith. This expression itself does not say “your ṣalāt” or “your facing the previous qiblah.”

Earlier explanations connect this verse to ṣalāt performed before the change of qiblah. The connection is understandable from context, since the subject is the qiblah and following the divine command.

The word’s meaning nevertheless needs to be distinguished from its referent in context. Lexically, إيمان does not mean ṣalāt, nor does أضاع mean changing the qiblah. In this situation, the verse assures those addressed that their faith will not become worthless or be wasted because of what has happened concerning the qiblah.

Even if ṣalāt performed towards the previous direction is understood as an instance in view, this does not change the lexical meaning of faith into ṣalāt.

وَمَا كَانَ ... لِيُضِيعَ

The construction مَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُضِيعَ also matters. It goes beyond a simple negation with لَا. Arabic ما كان ... ليفعل emphatically denies such an action.

English can convey this emphasis with “will never let it go to waste” or “The God would not let your faith go to waste.”

This emphasis should not be translated as inability on The God’s part. The verse denies that faith will be wasted in His relation to those addressed; it does not state an independent theory about ability and inability.

The ending لَرَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ places the promise that faith will not be wasted within a context of divine compassion and mercy.

Not wasting faith here is therefore understood as preserving the value of faith and what was done in following the divine command. The details of the qiblah question are understood through its own verses, rather than through ض ي ع itself.

4. Deeds and reward preserved: human effort is not lost with The God

Most Qur’anic uses of this root concern preserving the reward of those who believe, do good, put things right or endure difficulties in the way of The God.

لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ: the deeds of women and men

Āl ʿImrān 3:195 says:

«فَاسْتَجَابَ لَهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ أَنِّي لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ مِنْكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنْثَىٰ بَعْضُكُمْ مِنْ بَعْضٍ»

“Their Lord answered their supplication: I do not let the deed of any worker among you go to waste, male or female; you are of one another.”

(Āl ʿImrān 3:195; the first part of the verse)

عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ is the object of أُضِيعُ. By mentioning مِنْ ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنْثَىٰ, the Qur’an explicitly includes both sexes.

This shows that a person’s sex alone does not cause their deed to be wasted with The God. The continuation describes those who migrated, were driven from their homes, were harmed in His way, fought and were killed. It then promises forgiveness and entry into the Garden.

In this context, لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ is a promise concerning work and effort in the way of The God. It should not mean that every action receives a good reward regardless of whether it is good or bad.

The verse also does not restrict deeds and those who perform them to men, or require another social title or identity for recognising the value of women’s deeds.

The difference between deed and reward also matters. Here the deed itself is the object of the verb; in many other verses the reward is what will not be wasted. This does not change the root’s meaning, but shows that the Qur’an sometimes speaks of preserving completed work and sometimes of preserving its reward.

لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ

Āl ʿImrān 3:171 says:

«يَسْتَبْشِرُونَ بِنِعْمَةٍ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَفَضْلٍ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ»

“They rejoice in favour and bounty from The God, and that The God does not let the reward of the believers go to waste.”

(Āl ʿImrān 3:171)

This follows the discussion of those killed in the way of The God. The preceding verses describe them as alive with their Lord, receiving provision and His bounty.

In this context, لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ means that the reward of their faith and deeds is not lost.

Preserving reward does not itself specify exactly how much reward there is or in what form it is given. The accompanying verses describe the favour, bounty and their condition.

The entire content of reward in the hereafter should therefore not be placed within the lexical meaning of يُضِيعُ. The verb concerns waste, and its negation emphasises preserving the entitlement to reward.

أَجْرَ الْمُصْلِحِينَ: the reward of those who put things right

Al-Aʿrāf 7:170 says:

«وَالَّذِينَ يُمَسِّكُونَ بِالْكِتَابِ وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ إِنَّا لَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُصْلِحِينَ»

“As for those who hold fast to the Book and establish ṣalāt, We indeed do not let the reward of those who put things right go to waste.”

(Al-Aʿrāf 7:170)

This follows criticism of those who inherited the Book but, for passing worldly benefits, failed to remain faithful to what they knew.

By contrast, the verse describes those who remain committed to the Book and establish ṣalāt. The Qur’an then says that it does not waste the reward of the مصلحين.

الْمُصْلِحِينَ comes from ص ل ح and concerns putting things right. It must be distinguished from الْمُصَلِّينَ, those who perform ṣalāt. The written forms are close, but their roots and meanings differ.

Commitment to the Book and establishing ṣalāt appear alongside the description of putting things right. This association shows that more than a claim to possess the Book is at issue: conduct and action also matter.

ض ي ع itself nevertheless does not mean putting things right. The Qur’an speaks of preserving these people’s reward and expresses their deeds’ value through a description from another root.

أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ: goodness that does not remain unrewarded

Hūd 11:115 says:

«وَاصْبِرْ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ»

“Be patient, for The God does not let the reward of those who do good go to waste.”

(Hūd 11:115)

Patience appears alongside the promise of reward being preserved. The preceding verses also speak of steadfastness, keeping away from wrongdoers and establishing ṣalāt.

The divine promise thus appears among commands concerning perseverance and human conduct. Preserving reward does not replace performing these commands; it assures that goodness and perseverance will receive a response.

The same expression occurs in Al-Tawbah 9:120:

«إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ»

“The God indeed does not let the reward of those who do good go to waste.”

(Al-Tawbah 9:120; the end of the verse)

The context differs here. The verse describes thirst, fatigue, hunger and difficulties that believers experience in the way of The God, and says that these hardships and efforts are recorded for them as a righteous deed.

In this use, even difficulties accompanying the fulfilment of a responsibility are included in the reckoning of the deed’s value.

يُضِيعُ itself, however, cannot establish that every hardship is intrinsically a righteous deed. Here hardship appears within a course of action and responsibility described as فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ.

The criterion of value comes from this context and عَمَلٌ صَالِحٌ, rather than from the root for being wasted.

أَجْرَ مَنْ أَحْسَنَ عَمَلًا

Al-Kahf 18:30 says:

«إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ إِنَّا لَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ مَنْ أَحْسَنَ عَمَلًا»

“As for those who believe and do righteous deeds, We indeed do not let the reward of anyone who acts well go to waste.”

(Al-Kahf 18:30)

Faith and righteous deeds precede the promise that reward will not be wasted. The Qur’an then uses مَنْ أَحْسَنَ عَمَلًا instead of repeating a group designation.

أَحْسَنَ عَمَلًا concerns the quality of the action. The verse therefore describes acting well, beyond the mere existence of an action.

Acting well is understood through ح س ن and the context. نُضِيعُ continues to mean letting something go to waste, and its negation emphasises that reward will not be lost.

The next verse speaks of the Garden and reward in the hereafter. This context therefore connects preserving reward to the final outcome in the hereafter, although إضاعة itself means neither the Garden nor reward in the hereafter.

5. Joseph’s story: reward preserved in life and beyond it

Two further uses of the root occur in Yūsuf and are related in context.

وَلَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

Yūsuf 12:56 says:

«وَكَذَٰلِكَ مَكَّنَّا لِيُوسُفَ فِي الْأَرْضِ يَتَبَوَّأُ مِنْهَا حَيْثُ يَشَاءُ نُصِيبُ بِرَحْمَتِنَا مَنْ نَشَاءُ وَلَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ»

“Thus We established Joseph in the land, to settle wherever he wished. We bestow Our mercy on whom We will, and We do not let the reward of those who do good go to waste.”

(Yūsuf 12:56)

This verse concerns Joseph’s circumstances opening up and his attaining a position after years of difficulty and imprisonment.

وَلَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ occurs within that context. It should therefore not be understood solely as reward in the hereafter without attention to the story.

The next verse, however, says:

«وَلَأَجْرُ الْآخِرَةِ خَيْرٌ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَكَانُوا يَتَّقُونَ»

“The reward of the hereafter is better for those who believe and remain mindful.”

(Yūsuf 12:57)

These two verses distinguish the relief and benefit someone receives in worldly life from reward in the hereafter.

This distinction does not mean that every person who does good necessarily attains position, wealth or power in this world. Joseph’s story is a particular history. Other verses associate the promise that reward will be preserved with reward in the hereafter.

Preserving reward is therefore broader than one kind of reward, but its timing, amount and form cannot be determined through ض ي ع alone.

مَنْ يَتَّقِ وَيَصْبِرْ: Joseph’s words to his brothers

In Yūsuf 12:90, when his brothers recognise him, Joseph says:

«إِنَّهُ مَنْ يَتَّقِ وَيَصْبِرْ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ»

“Indeed, whoever remains mindful and patient, The God indeed does not let the reward of those who do good go to waste.”

(Yūsuf 12:90; the end of the verse)

Here the sentence about preserving reward belongs to Joseph’s speech, quoted by the Qur’an. This distinction in identifying the speaker must be retained.

After his identity becomes known, Joseph speaks of mindfulness, patience and the favour of The God. In this context, the promise concerning reward is connected to his conduct and perseverance through difficulties.

This verse associates mindfulness and patience with doing good, but does not make “not letting go to waste” mean being patient. Patience and mindfulness concern human conduct; preserving reward concerns the divine response to that person’s goodness.

These two uses in Yūsuf share a point: Joseph’s difficulties do not mean that his right conduct became worthless. The story nevertheless does not say that every unwanted outward result or period of waiting automatically indicates a guaranteed reward.

6. أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ: neglecting what should have been maintained

The Qur’an’s only affirmative occurrence of أَضَاعَ is Maryam 19:59:

«فَخَلَفَ مِنْ بَعْدِهِمْ خَلْفٌ أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَاتَّبَعُوا الشَّهَوَاتِ فَسَوْفَ يَلْقَوْنَ غَيًّا»

“They were followed by generations who neglected ṣalāt and followed their desires; they will therefore soon encounter ruin.”

(Maryam 19:59)

This follows the description of Prophets and those whom The God favoured. The previous verse says that, when the signs of the Most Merciful were recited to them, they fell down prostrating and weeping.

The Qur’an then describes generations who followed them and neglected ṣalāt.

What does neglecting ṣalāt mean?

Lexically, أَضَاعُوا means that they wasted or lost something, or abandoned it in such a way that its right and function were not respected.

The verb alone does not specify exactly how this happened. Someone might abandon an action completely, displace it from its proper place, or perform it so negligently that what should have been preserved is wasted.

Earlier explanations of this verse also differ. Some take neglecting ṣalāt to mean abandoning it completely; others discuss failures in observing it, including its timing.

These interpretations must be distinguished from the verb’s direct meaning. أَضَاعُوا itself means neither “they merely performed it late” nor necessarily “they never performed it.” Its precise application requires context and other evidence.

Nor does the verse say that they preserved every outward form of ṣalāt and lost only its inward reality. Determining such details requires evidence beyond the verb itself.

What is clear is that the generations criticised failed in their duty towards ṣalāt, and the Qur’an describes this conduct with أَضَاعُوا.

The relation to وَاتَّبَعُوا الشَّهَوَاتِ

The same verse follows أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ with وَاتَّبَعُوا الشَّهَوَاتِ.

The Qur’an places two kinds of conduct together: neglecting ṣalāt and following desires.

This association situates the neglect of ṣalāt within a change in these generations’ conduct and orientation. The subject extends beyond misplacing an object or forgetting a name.

Following desires is nevertheless not the lexical meaning of أَضَاعُوا. It describes another action accompanying the neglect of ṣalāt.

The ending also speaks of their encountering غَيًّا. This word belongs to another root and should not replace the meaning of ض ي ع. Neglecting ṣalāt and following desires are actions with consequences for them in this verse.

Verse 60 also leaves open the way of repentance, faith and righteous action. The passage therefore both condemns these generations and describes the possibility of returning and reforming.

The relation to أَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ

Comparing Maryam 19:59 with Al-Aʿrāf 7:170 reveals an important difference.

Al-Aʿrāf says:

«وَالَّذِينَ يُمَسِّكُونَ بِالْكِتَابِ وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ إِنَّا لَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُصْلِحِينَ»

(Al-Aʿrāf 7:170)

Maryam says:

«أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَاتَّبَعُوا الشَّهَوَاتِ»

(Maryam 19:59; part of the verse)

In one verse, ṣalāt is established and The God does not waste the reward of those who put things right. In the other, generations themselves neglect ṣalāt.

These uses clearly contrast preserving and maintaining a responsibility with abandoning or wasting it.

أَقَامَ and أَضَاعَ nevertheless belong to different roots. Establishing concerns setting up and making firm, while إضاعة concerns loss or waste. They stand in opposition in the context of ṣalāt, but are not exact opposites with matching meanings in every use of the language.

Nor should the entire meaning of ṣalāt be derived from this opposition. صلاة itself requires independent study of its root, construction and all its Qur’anic uses.

The contribution of ض ي ع is clear here: what should be respected, preserved or maintained is wasted through human conduct.

7. Comparison with related roots and translation choices

ض ي ع (ضَاعَ) and ف ر ط (فَرَطَ)

Some uses of فرط concern failing in a duty, exceeding a limit or missing an opportunity. In this respect, it is close to wasting something.

Al-Zumar 39:56 says:

«يَا حَسْرَتَىٰ عَلَىٰ مَا فَرَّطْتُ فِي جَنْبِ اللَّهِ»

“Alas for what I neglected in my duty towards The God.”

(Al-Zumar 39:56; part of the verse)

فَرَّطْتُ concerns neglect and failure here. Such neglect can cause the loss of a right or opportunity, but the two roots differ in meaning.

فرط in this use emphasises a person’s failure to fulfil a responsibility; ضيع emphasises the loss or waste of what should be preserved. Both can apply to one action while highlighting different aspects.

ض ي ع (أَضَاعَ) and ح ب ط (حَبِطَ)

Qur’anic حبط concerns deeds losing their value or effect.

Al-Māʾidah 5:5 says:

«وَمَنْ يَكْفُرْ بِالْإِيمَانِ فَقَدْ حَبِطَ عَمَلُهُ»

“Whoever rejects faith, his deed has come to nothing.”

(Al-Māʾidah 5:5; part of the verse)

حَبِطَ عَمَلُهُ refers to a deed becoming ineffective or losing its value. This is close to a deed being wasted, but the two roots are not identical throughout their uses.

In لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ, The God speaks of not wasting a deed. In حَبِطَ عَمَلُهُ, the deed itself is described as becoming ineffective.

The similarity of the results does not make the constructions exact synonyms, or allow rulings about deeds becoming void to be derived from ض ي ع itself.

ض ي ع (ضَاعَ) and خ س ر (خَسِرَ)

خسر concerns loss and shortfall in a result, whereas ضيع emphasises something being lost or wasted.

Wasted property may lead to financial loss, but not every loss results from abandoning or misplacing something. Someone may lose on a transaction even though their property or merchandise has not been misplaced in the usual sense.

Qur’anic خسران can also describe an outcome broader than a particular deed or right being wasted. These roots are close, but one should not be defined through the other’s entire semantic field.

ض ي ع (أَضَاعَ) and ت ر ك (تَرَكَ)

ترك concerns leaving or abandoning. In some situations, abandoning a responsibility can cause it to be wasted.

Not every act of leaving, however, amounts to waste. Someone may rightly set something aside, stop doing something wrong or entrust a responsibility to another person. In such cases, leaving does not necessarily have a negative meaning.

أَضَاعَ, by contrast, in its clear uses concerns something being lost or wasted when its preservation or reaching a result is at issue.

Some contextual readings can therefore explain أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ through abandoning ṣalāt, but إضاعة itself is not lexically confined to complete abandonment.

ض ي ع (أَضَاعَ) and ن س ي (نَسِيَ)

نسيان concerns forgetting or losing something from memory. Forgetting may cause a task to be neglected, but neglect is not always the result of forgetting.

Someone can remember a responsibility and still fail to respect it. Conversely, someone may forget something but, through a timely reminder, waste no right or responsibility.

“Forget” should therefore not be the fixed equivalent of أَضَاعَ. Maryam 19:59 describes neglecting ṣalāt, but the verb itself does not establish that this necessarily arose from forgetting.

Distinguishing roots that look similar

ض ي ع must be distinguished from ض و أ and ض ي ق.

ضِيَاء and أَضَاءَ come from ض و أ and concern brightness and light. The written resemblance between ضياع and ضياء does not establish a shared root.

ضَيْق comes from ض ي ق and concerns narrowness and restriction. A difficult constraint might create conditions for something being wasted, but its lexical meaning differs from ضياع.

Translation choices for Forqan

For general uses of أَضَاعَ, “wasted,” “let go to waste,” “neglected” or “lost” can be appropriate. The choice depends on the object and context.

Al-Baqarah 2:143, وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُضِيعَ إِيمَانَكُمْ, is well rendered: “The God will never let your faith go to waste.” This retains the root’s meaning and the emphatic negative construction.

Āl ʿImrān 3:195, لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ, can be translated “I do not let the deed of any worker go to waste.” “Deed” should be retained here, rather than automatically replaced with “reward.”

For the recurring لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ and لَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُصْلِحِينَ, “He does not let the reward of those who do good go to waste” and “We do not let the reward of those who put things right go to waste” are precise and natural.

Maryam 19:59, أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ, can be rendered “they neglected ṣalāt.” This leaves room to discuss the manner of neglect separately, without placing one disputed application, such as total abandonment or delay, into the translation beforehand.

مصلحين in Al-Aʿrāf 7:170 should also be rendered “those who put things right,” rather than “those who perform ṣalāt.” The resemblance of the written forms does not erase their different roots.

Overall, “let go to waste” and “neglect” are useful equivalents for this family, but should not invariably become complete, irreversible destruction. Some verses concern abandoning a responsibility, others preserving reward and the value of a deed. The text itself should show that difference.

8. Conclusion

Arabic ض ي ع concerns something being lost, wasted or left without the necessary care. In the basic construction ضَاعَ, something is lost; in أَضَاعَ and ضَيَّعَ, someone causes its loss or fails to preserve and respect it.

Early linguistic evidence shows that loss was not confined to property and material objects. Rights, covenants, friendship and responsibility could also be neglected. The root’s established Arabic uses therefore also accommodate the loss of nonmaterial things.

All ten Qur’anic occurrences are Form IV verbs. Nine express that The God does not waste something, and one attributes neglect of ṣalāt to people.

In Al-Baqarah 2:143, those addressed do not lose the value of their faith in the qiblah episode. In Āl ʿImrān 3:195, The God does not waste any worker’s deed, whether a woman or a man. Other verses preserve the reward of believers, those who put things right and those who do good. In Yūsuf, this promise also appears within a story of difficulty, patience and relief in life.

In contrast, Maryam 19:59 describes generations who neglected ṣalāt and followed desires. This expression itself does not restrict the manner of neglect to total abandonment, delay or loss of an inward reality. Its direct meaning is that they failed to preserve and respect ṣalāt and neglected it.

Two principal distinctions must remain clear. First, waste is not identical to physical misplacement or complete destruction: something may remain outwardly while its right, value or function is lost. Second, preserving reward does not itself determine its timing, amount or form. Those matters are understood through the relevant verses and context.

The semantic core of ض ي ع can be expressed as something being lost or wasted when it existed, held value or involved responsibility, or was expected to be preserved and reach its result; and, in a transitive construction, causing that waste or failing to prevent it.

In Qur’anic use, this meaning encompasses both neglecting ṣalāt and preserving faith, deeds and reward. What differs is the object of the waste and the responsibility involved, rather than the root’s basic meaning.