Articles · Vol. 2 No. 4 (2026)
THE ELLIPTED SYNTACTIC COMPLEMENT (AL-MUTAʿALLAQ AL-MAḤDHUF) IN AL-ZAMAKHSHARI’S TAFSIR AL-KASHSHAF: GRAMMATICAL STRUCTURE AND RHETORICAL FUNCTION
Keywords
al-Zamakhshari al-Kashshaf Qurʼanic linguistics syntactic ellipsis al-mutaʿallaq al-maḥdhuf Arabic grammar prepositional phrases nahw iʿrab Muʿtazilism Qurʼanic exegesis rhetorical analysisAbstract
This article examines the phenomenon of the ellipted syntactic complement
(al-mutaʿallaq al-maḥdhuf) in the Qurʾanic commentary Tafsir al-Kashshaf ʿan Ḥaqaʾiq
Ghawamiḍ al-Tanzil by Jar Allah al-Zamakhshari (d. 538 AH / 1144 CE). It explores how
al-Zamakhshari systematically employs his grammatical, rhetorical, and hermeneutical
expertise to identify, interpret, and justify the presence of omitted syntactic elements
in Qurʾanic discourse – particularly the elided governing verbs or semantic heads
associated with prepositional constructions (al-jar wa al-majrur).
The study situates this analytical approach within the broader intellectual framework
of classical Arabic grammar by tracing the theoretical foundations of the concept of
mutaʿallaq from Sibawayhi through the development of the Basran and Kufan grammatical
traditions and their eventual synthesis. In doing so, it demonstrates that al-Zamakhshari
not only inherits this rich grammatical legacy but also significantly refines and advances
it.
Through a systematic analysis of selected passages from al-Kashshaf, the article
argues that syntactic ellipsis in al-Zamakhshari’s exegesis functions on multiple levels: as
a grammatical necessity, a rhetorical strategy, and a hermeneutical tool. This multifaceted
function enables the exegete to reconstruct the full semantic depth of Qurʾanic expressions
from their condensed and rhetorically nuanced surface forms.
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