معاف

Malay

Noun

معاف (uncountable)

1. Jawi spelling of maaf.‎

Interjection

معاف

1. Jawi spelling of maaf.‎

Verb

معاف

1. Jawi spelling of maaf.‎

Persian

Etymology

Etymology tree

Arabic عَافَى (ʕāfā)

Arabic مُعَافًى (muʕāfan)bor.

Persian معاف

Borrowed from Arabic مُعَافًى (muʕāfan), from عَافَى (ʕāfā).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /mu.ˈʔaːf/

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mo̞.ʔɑ́ːf]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mo̞.ʔɑ́ːf]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mɑ́ːf]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mu.wɔ́ːf]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [mo.ʔɒ́ːf]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mu.ʔɔ́f]

Readings
Classical reading?	mu'āf
Dari reading?	mo'āf
Iranian reading?	mo'âf
Tajik reading?	mu'of

Adjective

معاف • (mu'āf / mo'âf) (Tajik spelling муоф)

1. exempt

   معاف از گمرک ― mo'âf az gomrok ― exempt from customs duty

   معاف از خدمت ― mo'âf az xedmat ― exempt from [military] service

   • c. 1060, Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Safarnāma [Book of Travels]‎^[1]:

     شب به دیه باریاب بودم و از آنجا به راه سمنگان و طالقان به مروالرود شدم. پس به مرو رفتم و از آن شغل که به عهدهٔ من بود معاف خواستم و گفتم که مرا عزم سفر قبله است.

     šab ba dīh-i bāryāb būdam u az ānjā ba rāh-i samangān u tāluqān ba marwu-r-rūd šudam. pas ba marw raftam u az ān šuġl ki ba uhda-yi man būd mu'āf xwāstam u guftam ki ma-rā azm-i safar-i qibla ast.

     We were at the village of Bāryāb for the night, and from there, we went to Marw al-Rūd on the road to Samangān and Tāluqān. So we went to Marw, and I requested to be exempt from the job that was my duty and said that my desire was to journey to the Qibla [Mecca].

Derived terms

• معاف شدن (mo'âf šodan, “to be exempted”)
• معاف کردن (mo'âf kardan, “to exempt”)
• معافی (mo'âfi, “exemption”)
• معافیت (mo'âfiyat, “exemption”)

Descendants

• → Bengali: মাফ (maph)
• → Gujarati: માફ (māph)
• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: माफ़ (māf), मुआफ़ (muāf)

  Urdu: مُعَاف (mu'āf)

• → Malayalam: മാപ്പ് (māppŭ)
• → Marathi: माफ (māph)
• → Nepali: माफ (māph)
• → Punjabi:

  Gurmukhi script: ਮਾਫ਼ (māf), ਮਾਫ (māph)

  Shahmukhi script: مَعَاف (maʻāf)

Urdu

Etymology

Etymology tree

Arabic عَافَى (ʕāfā)

Arabic مُعَافًى (muʕāfan)bor.

Classical Persian مُعَاف (mu'āf)bor.

Urdu مُعَاف (mu'āf)

Borrowed from Classical Persian مُعَاف (mu'āf), borrowed from Arabic مُعَافًى (muʕāfan), from عَافَى (ʕāfā).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /mʊ.(ʔ)ɑːf/, [mʊ.ɑ̯ːf]
• (Punjabic Urdu, Delhi Urdu) IPA^(key): [mɑːf]
• Rhymes: -ɑːf
• Hyphenation: مُ‧عاف

Adjective

مُعَاف • (mu'āf) (indeclinable, Hindi spelling माफ़)

1. forgiven (for a mistake etc.)
2. pardoned (from a punishment)
3. absolved; cancelled (of a fine etc.)

Further reading

• “معاف”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
• “معاف”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2025.
• Fallon, Platts, Qureshi, Shakespear (2024), “معاف”, in Digital Dictionaries of South Asia [Combined Urdu Dictionaries]