مُتَتَابِعَیۡنۡ

[1] تَبِعَهُ , (S, Mgh, Msb, K, &c.,) aor. تَبَعَ , inf. n. تَبَعٌ (S, Msb, K) and تَبَاعَةٌ, (S, K,) He followed; or went, or walked, behind, or after; (S, Mgh, Msb, K;) him, (Mgh, Msb, K,) or it; namely, a people, or company of men: (S:) or [in the CK “ and ”] he went with him, or it, when the latter had passed by him: (S, Mgh, Msb, K:) and ↓ اِتَّبَعَهُ signifies the same; (Lth, S, K *) and so does ↓ أَتْبَعَهُ: (Lth, Mgh, K:) or ↓ أَتْبَعْتُهُمْ signifies I overtook them, they having gone before me; (Fr, * A'Obeyd, S, Msb, * K;) as also تَبِعْتُهُمْ: (Fr, K:) Akh says that تَبِعْتُهُ and ↓ أَتْبَعْتُهُ signify the same: and hence the saying in the Kur [xxxvii. 10], فَأَتْبَعَهُ ↓ شِهَابٌ ثَاقِبٌ [and a shooting star piercing the darkness by its light overtaketh him]: (S:) and the saying in the same [vii. 174], ↓ فَأَتْبَعَهُ الشَّيْطَانُ and the devil overtook him: (TA:) and the saying in the same [xx. 81], فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ ↓ فِرْعَوْنُ بِجُنُودِهِ and Pharaoh overtook them with his troops: or almost did so: (Ibn-'Arafeh, K:) or this signifies made his troops to follow them; (TA;) the ب, accord. to some, being redundant: (Bd:) or ↓ أَتْبَعَهُ signifies he followed his footsteps; and sought him, following him: (TA:) but ↓ اِتَّبَعَهُمْ signifies he went [after them, or followed them,] when they had passed by him; as also تَبِعَهُمْ, inf. n. تَبَعٌ: you say, ↓ مَا زِلْتُ أَتَّبِعُهُمْ ↓ حَتَّى أَتْبَعْتُهُمْ, i. e. [I ceased not to follow them] until I overtook them: (A'Obeyd:) Fr says that ↓ أَتْبَعَ is better than ↓ اِتَّبَعَ; for the latter signifies he went behind, or after, him, when the latter person was going along; but when you say, ↓ أَتْبَعْتُهُ, it is as though [you meant that] you followed his footsteps: (TA:) and ↓ اِتَّبَعَ ↓ فُلَانٌ فُلَانًا [as in the L and TA, but perhaps a mistake for ↓ أَتْبَعَ,] signifies also he followed him, desiring to do evil to him; like as Pharaoh followed Moses: (L, TA:) some say, تَبِعْتُ الشَّىْءَ, inf. n. تُبُوعٌ, meaning I went after the thing: and تَبِعَ الشَّىْءَ, inf. n. تَبَعٌ and تَبَاعٌ, (assumed tropical:) [he followed the thing] in respect of actions: (L, TA:) you say, تَبِعَ الإِمَامَ (assumed tropical:) he followed the Imám [by doing as he did]: (Msb:) [but in this last sense, more commonly,] one says, ↓ اِتَّبَعَهُ, meaning (assumed tropical:) he did like as he [another] did: (TA:) and اِتَّبَعَ ↓ القُرْآنَ (assumed tropical:) he followed the Kurán as his guide; did according to what is in it: (TA:) and you say also, تَابَعَهُ ↓ عَلَى الأَمْرِ; (Msb;) or على كَذَا, inf. n. مُتَابَعَةٌ and تِبَاعٌ; (S;) (assumed tropical:) [he followed him, or imitated him, in the affair;] (Msb;) he followed him, or imitated him, in doing such a thing: (PS:) [but this last phrase has another meaning: see 3.] In the saying, لَا يُتْبَعُ بِنَارٍ إِلَى القَبْرِ, [in which the verb may be pass. of تَبِعَ or of ↓ أَتْبَعَ,] or, accord. to one relation, ↓ لا يُتَّبَعُ, each in the pass. form, [Fire shall not be made to follow to the grave, though it may be rendered one shall not follow with fire to the grave, it is said that] the ب is to render the verb transitive. (Mgh.) ― 2-b2- تَبِعْتُ الرَّجُلَ بِحَقِّى; and تَابَعْتُهُ ↓ بِهِ, inf. n. مُتَابَعَةٌ [and probably تبَاعٌ also]; and اِتَّبَعْتُهُ ↓ به; I prosecuted, or sued, the man for my right, or due. (TA.) The saying in the Kur [ii. 173], فَٱتِّبَاعٌ ↓ بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ means [Then] prosecution for the bloodwit [shall be made with lenity]. (TA.) ― 2-b3- تَبِعَ, of which the aor., يَتْبَع, occurs in a trad., [see 4,] (Mgh, TA,) pronounced by the relaters of trads. with teshdeed, [↓ يَتَّبِع,] (TA,) also signifies (assumed tropical:) He accepted a reference from his debtor to another for the payment of what was owed to him. (Mgh, TA. *)