10
1.
He sought, desired, demanded, or begged, of him, aid, help, or assistance. (MA.) You say, اِسْتَعَنْتُهُ, (Mgh,) or اِسْتَعَنْتُ بِهِ, (S, Msb,) or both, (K,)
فَأَعَانَنِى (S, Mgh, Msb, * K) and
عَاوَنَنِى, (S, TA,) for which last,
عَوَّنَنِى is erroneously put in the copies of the K; (TA;) [i. e. I sought, &c., of him, aid, &c., and he aided me.] The alteration of the infirm letter [و into ا] is made in استعان and
اعان in imitation of a general rule [which requires it when that alteration is made in the unaugmented triliteral verb], though عَانَ, aorist يَعُونُ, [as their source of derivation,] is not used. (TA.) ب [i. e. بِ] is called حَرْفُ اسْتِعَانَةٍ [A particle denotative of seeking aid, &c.,] because when you say ضَرَبْتُ بِالسَّيْفِ and كَتَبْتُ بِالقَلَمِ and بَرَيْتُ بِالمُدْيَةِ, it is as though you said اِسْتَعَنْتُ
بِهٰذِهِ الأَدَوَاتِ عَلَي هٰذِهِ الأَفْعَالِ [meaning I sought aid of these instruments, or made use of them as means, against, i. e. to perform, these actions of smiting &c.]. (TA.) [And you say, استعان
بِنَفْسِهِ, meaning He sought self-help, or exerted himself,
فِي أَمْرٍ
in an affair, and عَلَيْهِ
against it, or him.]