Negotiating Polysemy: A Critical Analysis of ḍaraba in Four English Translations of the Qur’an

Abstract

This study investigates the polysemous Qur’anic verb daraba, a lexeme whose diverse semantic range—from physical striking and traveling to parable-setting and legal-metaphorical usage—poses significant challenges for translators. Focusing on four influential English versions of the Qur’an (Pickthall, Asad, Bakhtiar, and Sahih International), the research applies Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to examine how translators’ lexical and discursive choices both reflect and reproduce ideological orientations. The analysis categorizes 53 occurrences of daraba into five semantic domains: physical action, parable-setting, traveling, punishment/discipline, and legal/metaphorical usage. The findings reveal that the translators converge on neutral renderings in less contested categories (e.g., traveling), but diverge sharply in sensitive contexts such as Q 4:34, where translation choices range from “scourge” and “strike” to “beat” and “go away.” CDA emphasises that these differences are discursive interventions influenced by gendered, cultural, and theological commitments rather than semantically neutral ones. Asad rationalises meaning through philosophical contextualisation, Bakhtiar reformulates ethically to challenge patriarchal readings, Sahih International simplifies for accessibility in accordance with conservative orthodoxy, and Pickthall maintains a biblical-archaic solemnity.  This study shows that Qur'anic translation is a site of ideological negotiation where polysemy becomes a resource for framing authority, ethics, and reform by fusing semantic typology with discourse analysis. The results support translation studies, Qur'anic studies, and discussions about the relationship between language, ideology, and sacred texts.