सब्र-आज़मा

Meaning

Testing or trying one's patience; severely testing endurance.

Detailed Meaning

An adjectival compound denoting something that severely stretches or tests a person's patience and endurance. In this couplet, it describes the beloved's elusive promise, which inflicts the agony of endless waiting rather than delivering relief. Classical poetry frequently relies on such compounds to express the torment felt by the lover under protracted delays.

Etymology

Arabic 'sabr' (patience, endurance) + Persian 'aazmaa' (from aazmoodan, to test, try).

Usage

In the ghazal tradition, this epithet is conventionally linked to promises, waiting, and absence that push the lover's endurance to its breaking point.

Examples

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Related Words