أَمَةٌ

, originally اموة, (Msb,) [but whether أَمَوَةٌ or أَمْوَةٌ is disputed, as will be seen in what follows,] A female slave; (M, K;) a woman whose condition is that of slavery; (T;) opposite of حُرَّةٌ: (S:) [in relation to God, best rendered a handmaid:] dual أَمَتَانِ: (Msb:) plural امٍ, (Lth, T, S, M, Msb, K, &c.,) like قِاضٍ, (Msb,) a plural of pauc. [respecting which see what follows after the other pls.], (Lth, T,) and إِمَاءٌ [the most common form] (T, S, M, Mgh, Msb, K) and إِمْوَانٌ (T, S, M, Msb, K) and أُمْوَانٌ (K, and so in some copies of the M) and أَمْوَانٌ (K, and so in some copies of the M) [the last, or last but one, according to different copies of the M, on the authority of Lh,] and أَمَوَاتٌ, (M, Msb, K,) for which one may say أَمَاتٌ. (Ibn-Keysán, TA.) Accord. to Sb (M) and Mbr (TA) it is originally أَمَوَةٌ, (S, M, K,) because it has for a plural امٍ, (S, M,) which is [originally أَأْمُوٌ,] of the measure أَفْعُلٌ, (Lth, T, S,) like اكُمٌ, plural of أَكَمَةٌ, (Sb, M,) and like أَيْنُقٌ, [plural of نَاقةٌ, which is originally نَوَقةٌ,] for a singular of the measure فَعْلَةٌ has not a plural of this form; (S;) and Mbr says that there is no noun of two letters but a letter has been dropped from it, which it indicates by its plural or dual, or by a verb if it is derived therefrom: (TA:) or it is originally فَعْلَةٌ: (AHeyth, T, K:) AHeyth says that they suppressed its final radical letter, and, forming a plural from it after the manner of نَخْلَةٌ and نَخْلٌ, instead of saying أَمٌ, which they disliked as being of only two letters, they transposed the suppressed و, changing it into ا, and placing it between the ا and م. (T: [in which this opinion, though it does not account for the termination of the plural امٍ, is said to be preferable.]) One says, جَاءَ تْنِىً أَمَةُ اللّٰهِ [The handmaid of God came to me]: and in the dual, جَاءَ تْنِى أمَتَا اللّٰهِ: and in the plural, جَاءَ نِى إِمَاءُ اللّٰهِ and إِمْوَانُ اللّٰهِ and أَمَوَاتُ اللّٰهِ; and one may also say, أَمَاتُ اللّٰه. (Ibn-Keysán, TA.) [ISd says,] وَمَاهُ اللّٰهُ مِنْ كُلِّ أَمَةٍ بحَجَرٍ is mentioned by IAar as said in imprecating evil on a man; but I think it is من كلّ أَمْتِ [May God cast a stone at him from every elevated place, or the like]. (M.)