Semantic Alternation of the Comparative Form “Af’al” (أَفـْعَل) in the Holy Qur’an

Abstract

This research aims to observe some of the compositional characteristics of the comparative form “af’al” (أَفْعل) in the Holy Qur’an, and its departure from the meaning of the preference to the semantic assignment of another form such as the present participle, the adjective, exaggeration forms, or exclamation.

It is also indicative of some rhetorical meanings when it is mentioned in the context of the interrogation sentence, as most of what is mentioned in the comparative form “af’al” (أَفْعل) in the Holy Qur’anic interrogation is not intended to be a real, but rather rhetorical, question.

This research tries to link syntax, morphology, and semantics, in addition to rhetoric.