1figurative · مجاز[Since yesterday]—مُذْ أَمْسَ
Yesterday, the day before the present day by one night; and figuratively applied to what is before that, or a short time before. [Used as a noun and as an adverb,] it is indeclinable, taking any of the three vowels as its ending: [written أَمْسِ and أمْسَ and أمْسُ].
Or it is an adverbial noun, indeclinable, ending with kesr, unless it is made indeterminate or made determinate [by the article ال]; and sometimes indeclinable with fet-h. (Ez-Zejjájee) Or, according to I Hsh, the ending with fet-h is a rejected form, and the ending with damm is not mentioned by any of the grammarians.
This occurs, used by poetic licence.
أَمْس is a noun whose last letter is made movent to avoid the meeting of two sākin letters. The Arabs differ about it: most of them make it indeclinable, ending with kesr, when it is determinate [without the article ال]; but some of them make it [imperfectly] declinable when it is determinate [in the same manner].
I saw him yesterday—رَأَيْتُهُ أَمْسِ
I saw him yesterday—بِالأَمْسِ
I saw him yesterday—الأَمْسَ
[I have not seen him since yesterday]—مَا رَأَيْتُهُ مُذْأَمْسِ
[I have not seen him since the day before yesterday]—مَا رَأَيْتُهُ مُذْ أَوَّلُ مِنْ أَمْسِ
[I have not seen him since the day before the day before yesterday]—مَا رَأَيْتُهُ مُذْ أَوَّلُ مِنْ أَوَّلَ مِنْ أَمْسِ
[I saw him yesterday]—رَأَيْتُهُ أَمْسٍ
This is according to the most approved usage.
This form is the more common.
This phrase has also been heard, but it is extraordinary.
The people of El-Hijáz make أَمْس indeclinable, ending with kesr; the Benoo-Temeem do the same when it is in the accusative or genitive case, but make it [imperfectly] declinable when it is in the nominative case.
[Yesterday has gone with what happened during it]—ذَهَبَ أَمْسُ بِمَا فِيهِ
The Benoo-Temeem hold it to be, in the nominative case, a deviation from الإَمْسُ, and therefore imperfectly declinable, because it is determinate, [and so resembles a proper name,] and because of its deviation from the original form, like سَحَرُ in the like case.
[Yesterday has gone with what happened during it]—ذَهَبَ أَمْسِ بِمَا فِيهِ
The people of El-Hijáz say this because it is [held by them to be] indeclinable, since it implies the determinative article ال [understood as prefixed to it], the kesreh being added to avoid the meeting of two sākin letters.
All of the Arabs, however, make it declinable when the article ال is prefixed to it, when it is made indeterminate, or when it is prefixed to another noun.
[Every morrow becomes a yesterday]—كُلُّ غَدٍ صَائِرٌ أَمْسٍا
Using it indeterminately.
[The yesterday was good]—كَانَ الأَمْسُ طَيِّبًا
Making it determinate by the article ال.
[The blessed yesterday has passed]—مَضَي الأَمْسُ المُبَارَكُ
[All of our yesterday was good]—كُلُّ أَمْسِنَا كَانَ طَيِّبًا
[Our yesterday has passed]—مَضَى أَمْسُنَا
Prefixing it to another noun.
Therefore, in the following verse — [And I stood today, and yesterday before it, at your door until the sun was almost setting]
shāhidوَإِنِّى وَقَفْتُ اليَوْمَ وَالأَمْسِ قَبْلَهُبِبَابِكَ حَتَّى كَادَتِ الشَّمْسُ تَغْرُبُ
— which IAar related in two different ways, الأَمْسِ and الأَمْسَ.
If we read الأَمْسِ, the ال is redundant, because it is implied in the word أَمْسِ; but if we read الأَمْسَ, the ال is not implied in أَمْسَ, and so it is prefixed to make it determinate.
The plural is آمُسٌ and آمَاسٌ, both plurals of paucity, and أمُوسٌ (Zj; [in the CK, incorrectly, امُوْسٌ]), which is a plural of multitude.
There is no diminutive form of أَمْس, as there is none of غَدٌ, البَارِحَةُ, كَيْفَ, أَيْنَ, مَتَى, أَىُّ, مَا, عِندَ, or the names of the months and of the days of the week, except الجُمْعَةُ.
Lane cites “Bd in x. 25” — a commentary, not the verse; no modern number is given
Show Lane's original text
, meaning Yesterday, or the day before the present day (Msb, K) by one night, (K,) and tropically applied to what is before that, (Msb,) or a short time before, (Bd in x. 25,) [used as a subst. and as an adv.,] is indecl., with any of the three vowels for its termination: (K:) [written أَمْسِ and أمْسَ and أمْسُ :] or it is an adv. n., indecl., with kesr for its termination, unless made indeterminate, or made determinate [be the article ال ]; and sometimes indecl. with fet-h: (EzZejjájee, M, TA:) or, accord. to I Hsh, the termination with fet-h is a rejected form; and that with damm is not mentioned by any of the grammarians: (TA:) but مُذْ أَمْسَ [Since yesterday] occurs, used by poetic licence: (Sb, S:) أَمْس is a noun of which the last letter is made movent to avoid the concurrence of two quiescent letters: and the Arabs differ respecting it: (S:) most of them make it indecl., with kesr for its termination, when it is determinate [without the article ال ]: but some of them make it [imperfectly] decl. when it is determinate [in the same manner]: (S, K: *) [accord. to the most approved usage,] you say, [ رَأَيْتُهُ أَمْسِ , and بِالأَمْسِ , which is more common, and الأَمْسَ , I saw him yesterday; and] مَا رَأَيْتُهُ مُذْأَمْسِ [I have not seen him since yesterday]; and if you have not seen him [since the day next] before that, you say, مَا رَأَيْتُهُ مُذْ أَوَّلُ مِنْ أَمْسِ [I have not seen him since the day before yesterday]; and if you have not seen him [since] two days before that, you say, مَا رَأَيْتُهُ مُذْ أَوَّلُ مِنْ أَوَّلَ مِنْ أَمْسِ [I have not seen him since the day before the day before yesterday]. (ISk, TA.) The phrase رَأَيْتُهُ أَمْسٍ [I saw him yesterday] has also been heard, but it is extr. (K.) The people of El-Hijáz make أَمْس indecl., with kesr for its termination; and the Benoo-Temeem do the same when it is in the accus. or gen. case; but these latter make it [imperfectly] decl. when it is in the nom. case, saying, ذَهَبَ أَمْسُ بِمَا فِيهِ [Yesterday has gone with what happened during it]; whereas the people of El-Hijáz say, ذَهَبَ أَمْسِ بِمَا فِيهِ , because it is [held by them to be] indecl. on account of its implying that it has the determinative article ال [understood as prefixed to it], the kesreh being added to avoid the concurrence of two quiescent letters; while the Benoo-Temeem hold it to be, in the nom. case, a deviation from الإَمْسُ , and therefore imperfectly decl., because of its being determinate, [and so resembling a proper name,] and its deviation from the original form, like سَحَرُ in the like case: (IB, TA:) all of the Arabs, however, make it decl. when the article ال is prefixed to it, (S, K, *) and when it is made indeterminate, or is prefixed to another noun: (S:) they say, using it indeterminately, كُلُّ غَدٍ صَائِرٌ أَمْسٍا [Every morrow becomes a yesterday]; (S, * IB;) and making it determinate by the article ال , they say, كَانَ الأَمْسُ طَيِّبًا [The yesterday was good], (IB,) and مَضَي الأَمْسُ المُبَارَكُ [The blessed yesterday has past]; (S;) and prefixing it to another noun, كُلُّ أَمْسِنَا كَانَ طَيِّبًا [All of our yesterday was good], (IB,) and مَضَى أَمْسُنَا [Our yesterday has past]: (S:) [therefore,] in the following verse, 1 [And verily I stood to-day, and yesterday before it, at thy door until the sun was almost setting], (thus related by IAar in two different ways, الأَمْسِ and الأَمْسَ ,) if we read الأَمْسِ , the ال is redundant, because it is implied in the word أَمْسِ ; but if we read الأَمْسَ , the ال is not implied in أَمْسَ , and therefore is prefixed to make it determinate. (IJ, M.) The pl. is آمُسٌ and آمَاسٌ , (Zj, K,) both pls. of pauc., (Zj, TA,) and أمُوسٌ , (Zj, K, TA, [in the CK, incorrectly, امُوْسٌ ,]) which is a pl. of mult. (Zj, TA.) There is no dim. form of أَمْس ; like as there is none of غَدٌ and البَارِحَةُ and كَيْفَ and أَيْنَ and مَتَى and أَىُّ and مَا and عِندَ and the names of the months and those of the days of the week, except الجُمْعَةُ . (Sb, S.) وَإِنِّى وَقَفْتُ اليَوْمَ وَالأَمْسِ قَبْلَهُ | بِبَابِكَ حَتَّى كَادَتِ الشَّمْسُ تَغْرُبُ