Discover the meaning of the term Al-adaʾ (أداء) in Islamic vocabulary.
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Updated on 11 April 2026 at 1:05 AM
📖 3 min readIt is the delivery of the object fixed in liability (dhimma) by the binding cause, such as the time for the prayer and the month for the fast, to the one entitled to that obligation.
It denotes performing the very object of the obligation at its time.
Likewise, al-qada' in language is the performance of acts tied to a time, such as the fajr prayer for instance, and the like, as with the ada' of zakat and the deposit, and the qada' of rights and of the hajj; and performing it a second time after the first became void, and similar matters, such as praying in congregation seeking merit after having prayed alone.
In language: from adda dayna-hu ta'diyyan (he discharged his debt): he discharged it. Al-ada' is also used for conveyance; one says: adda ash-shay': that is, he delivered it. Ada' and qada' are used in language for the performance of acts with a fixed time, such as the ada' of the obligatory prayer and its qada', and for acts without a fixed time, such as the ada' of zakat and the deposit, the qada' of rights, and the like.
Al-ada': the performing of the thing at its fixed time; mentioned by al-Harali.
The worship performed at its appointed time and not preceded by a void performance.
Performing the thing at its fixed time; mentioned by al-Harali. Al-Raghib said (Al-mufradat, p. 14): in language, the discharge of what is due to be discharged; by convention, the doing of what whose time has come before it passes.
It denotes performing the very object of the obligation at its time. The Sayyid said: it is the delivery of the object fixed in liability by the binding cause, such as the time for the prayer and the month for the fast, to the one entitled to that obligation.