Arabic:
وَعَلَّمَ آدَمَ الأَسْمَاءَ كُلَّهَا ثُمَّ عَرَضَهُمْ عَلَى الْمَلَائِكَةِ فَقَالَ أَنبِئُونِي بِأَسْمَاءِ هَٰؤُلَاءِ إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ
Transliteration:
Wa ‘allama Ādama-l-asmā’a kullahā thumma ‘araḍahum ‘ala-l-malā’ikati faqāla anbi’ūnī bi-asmā’i hā‘ulā’i in kuntum sādiqīn
Meaning (English):
"And He taught Adam the names – all of them. Then He presented them to the angels and said, 'Tell Me the names of these, if you are truthful.'"
Linguistic Aspects of the Verse
1. Verb: عَلَّمَ (‘allama – “He taught”)
This is the key verb. It is Form II of the root ع ل م (‘-l-m), meaning “to know, to make known, to teach.”
Form II in Arabic often indicates causation or intensification → here, Allah is not just letting Adam discover but actively causing him to know (explicit teaching).
Linguistically, this suggests direct divine instruction, not trial-and-error or gradual learning.
