اِخْتِلَافٌ
1.
signifies The following reciprocally; or alternating. (Mgh.) So in the phrase in the Qur'an, 2:159 and iii. 187 and xlv. 4], وَاخْتِلَافِ
اللَّيْلُ وَالنَّهَارِ
And the alternating of the night and the day. (Mgh) [And in a verse of El-'Ajjáj cited voce أَبْلَى, in article بلو.] And hence the phrase, اِخْتَلَفَا ضَرْبَةً
Each of them beat, or struck the other in turn. (Mgh.) And the saying, in a tradition of 'Alee, فَاخْتَلَفَتْ بَيْنَ عُبَيْدَةَ بْنِ الحٰرِثِ
وَالوَلِيدِ بْنِ عُقْبَةَ ضَرْبَتَانِ [And two blows were interchanged between 'Obeydeh Ibn-El-Hárith and El-Weleed Ibn-'Okbeh]. (Mgh.) And the saying, in a tradition of Umm-Sabeeyeh, اِخْتَلَفَتْ يَدِى
وَيدُ رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ فِى إِنَاءٍ وَاحِدٍ, meaning My hand and the hand of the Apostle of God were both put [by turns] into one vessel. (Mgh.) And اِخْتَلَفُوا signifies They followed, or succeeded, one another; whenever one went, another coming after him. (TA in article عور.)
2.
Also The going, or moving, repeatedly, to and fro; so coming and going; or reciprocating; synonym تَرَدُّدٌ [in this sense, as is shown in this article in the K and TA, and in the S and K in article رود &c.: and also as mean ing the returning, or repairing, time after time, or repeatedly, or frequently, to a person or place; because it implies coming and going: and sometimes it means simply the returning; because this cannot be without a previous going]. (K.) You say, هُوَ يَخْتَلِفُ إِلَى فُلَانٍ, i. e. يَتَرَدَّدُ [He returns, or repairs, time after time, repeatedly, or frequently, to such a one]: and اِخْتَلَفَ إِلَيْهِ اخْتِلَافَةً وَاحِدَةً [He returned to him once]. (TA.) And هُوَ
يَخْتَلِفُ إِلَى مَجَالِسِ العِلْمِ
He repairs frequently to, or frequents, the assemblies of science; synonym يَتَرَدَّدُ. (A in article رد.) And اِخْتَلَفَ إِلَى المُتَوَضَّأِ [He returned, or repaired, time after time, &c., to the privy]. (S.) And اِخْتَلَفَ إِلَى الخَلاءِ [properly signifies the same: and hence, (assumed tropical:) He had a looseness of the bowels, or a diarrhœa]. (K.) And [perhaps as implying coming and going,] اختلف also signifies He supplied, or gave, or offered, water. (TA.)
3.
[Also The disagreeing, differing, or varying, in state or condition or quality &c.; being dissimilar, different, diverse, various, incongruous, discordant, or dissentient:] اختلف is the opposite of
اِتَّفَقَ; (K, TA;) and is said of anything that is dissimilar [in the parts or members &c. of which it is composed]; as also
تخالف. (TA.) You say, الأَمْرَانِ
تخالف [and اختلف الامران], i. e. لَمْ يَتَّفِقَا [The two things, or affairs, or cases, were, or became, dissimilar, &c.]. (TA.) And اختلفوا and
تخالفوا (Mgh, Msb) [They disagreed, &c., فِى أَمْرٍ
in a thing or an affair or a case;] every one of them took to, or held, a way, or an opinion, different from, or contrary to, that of another: (Msb:) both signify the same. (Mgh.) It is said in a tradition, سَوُّوا صُفُوفَكُمْ وَلَا تَخْتَلِفُوا فَتَخْتَلِفَ قُلُوبُكُمْ [Make ye your ranks even when ye place yourselves to pray together, and be not dissimilar in your positions, for in that case your hearts would disagree]; meaning, when one of you advances, or stands, before another in the ranks, your hearts will be affected, and disagreement in respect of friendship and amity will arise among you: or, as some say, it means, your hearts will be made to recoil: or the
صُورَة [or specific character] of your hearts will become changed into another
صورة. (TA.) [Hence,] اِخْتَلَفَتْ عَنْ أَنْوَايءِهَا, said of stars: see 4, near the middle of the paragraph.
4.
Also The being complicated, intricate, or confused. (KL.) [You say, اختلف الأَمْرُ بَيْنَهُمْ
The affair, or case, was, or became, complicated, intricate, or confused, so as to be a subject of disagreement, or difference, between them: a phrase of frequent occurrence.]
5.
اختلفهُ: see 1, in two places, in the former half of the paragraph.
6.
See also 2, in two places.
7.
اختلف صَاحِبَهُ: see 3, near the middle of the paragraph.