r-b-s

Description

The Arabic root ربص (r-b-ṣ) carries the core meaning of watching, waiting, or lying in wait with anticipation or expectation of a specific outcome. In the Quran, it appears in contexts ranging from believers waiting patiently for Allah's judgment, to enemies lying in ambush, to widows observing their waiting period (ʿiddah) after the death of their husbands. The root conveys both the temporal aspect of waiting and the purposeful watchfulness during that period, making it significant in describing various states of anticipation—whether for divine intervention, plotting against others, or fulfilling religious obligations.