Da'if

A hadith that fails one of the conditions of soundness, through a broken chain or a faulty narrator.

Also written · Daif · Da'eef · Daeef · Dhaif · Dhaeef · Dha'eef · Zaif · Zaeef · Zaeef hadith · Weak hadith · Daif hadith · Dhaif hadeeth

The meaning

What Da'if means in Islam

Weak does not mean false. It means the report did not arrive with enough support to be relied upon. Weakness has degrees, from a slight gap that other chains can repair, up to a narrator accused of lying, which nothing can repair. Whether a weak hadith may be used to encourage good deeds is an old disagreement among scholars rather than a settled rule.

Evidence · Scholars differ · The scholars read this one differently

Read beside it

Words that sit beside it

SahihA hadith that meets all five conditions of authenticity, with nothing missing and no hidden flaw.الصَّحِيح
HasanA hadith meeting every condition of sahih except that one narrator's accuracy falls slightly short.الحَسَن
Fada'il al-A'malThe old question of whether a weak hadith may be used to encourage deeds already known to be good.فَضَائِلُ الأَعْمَال
MatrukA report from a narrator the scholars abandoned, usually one accused of lying or of gross error.المَتْرُوك
Mawdu'A fabricated report, invented and then attached to the Prophet; not really a hadith at all.المَوْضُوع