Surah An-Nahl · Ayah 40·Makkī

40

إِنَّمَا إِذَآ أَن لَهُۥ ﴿٤٠﴾

Translation

Saheeh International

Indeed, Our word to a thing when We intend it is but that We say to it, "Be," and it is.

Compare all 34 translations →

Tafsīr

No commentary indexed for this ayah yet.

Verse DNA · this āyah at a glance

Vocabulary and recitation are counted from the morphology and the Uthmani marks; commentary reports whether an authored tafsīr entry reaches this āyah. A structural read, not a judgement — a denser strip is not a weightier verse.

Vocabulary · 4 roots in 6 of 10 words

Recitation · 12 points across 5 rule families

  • Ghunnah2
  • Madd ṭabīʿī5
  • Iẓhār3
  • Heavy rāʾ1
  • Qalqalah1

Commentary

No tafsīr entry reaches this āyah yet — the interpretive layer covers a pilot, not the whole Book.

Shape

10 words · 36 letters · āyah 40 of 128

once in the Qurʾān2–10×11–50×51–300×300+×

Similar verses by meaning

Ranked by semantic similarity over translation embeddings — a model’s proxy for meaning, not a claim about it, and not tafsīr. Verses may be kin in theme while differing entirely in wording.

  • Quran 36:82 · Yaseenvery close

    إِنَّمَآ أَمْرُهُۥٓ إِذَآ أَرَادَ شَيْـًٔا أَن يَقُولَ لَهُۥ كُن فَيَكُونُ

    His command is only when He intends a thing that He says to it, "Be," and it is.

  • Quran 43:42 · Az-Zukhrufclose

    أَوْ نُرِيَنَّكَ ٱلَّذِى وَعَدْنَٰهُمْ فَإِنَّا عَلَيْهِم مُّقْتَدِرُونَ

    Or whether [or not] We show you that which We have promised them, indeed, We are Perfect in Ability.

  • Quran 39:39 · Az-Zumarclose

    قُلْ يَٰقَوْمِ ٱعْمَلُوا۟ عَلَىٰ مَكَانَتِكُمْ إِنِّى عَٰمِلٌ فَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

    Say, "O my people, work according to your position, [for] indeed, I am working; and you are going to know

  • Quran 75:17 · Al-Qiyaamarelated

    إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا جَمْعَهُۥ وَقُرْءَانَهُۥ

    Indeed, upon Us is its collection [in your heart] and [to make possible] its recitation.

  • Quran 67:29 · Al-Mulkrelated

    قُلْ هُوَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنُ ءَامَنَّا بِهِۦ وَعَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْنَا فَسَتَعْلَمُونَ مَنْ هُوَ فِى ضَلَٰلٍ مُّبِينٍ

    Say, "He is the Most Merciful; we have believed in Him, and upon Him we have relied. And you will [come to] know who it is that is in clear error."

  • Quran 2:11 · Al-Baqararelated

    وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ لَا تُفْسِدُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ مُصْلِحُونَ

    And when it is said to them, "Do not cause corruption on the earth," they say, "We are but reformers."

Verses built from the same roots

Ranked by shared vocabulary (idf-cosine over each verse’s root-set). Shared words are a fact about form — they do not by themselves mean two verses are about the same thing.

  • Yaseen 36:824 shared roots

    إِنَّمَآ أَمْرُهُۥٓ إِذَآ أَرَادَ شَيْـًٔا أَن يَقُولَ لَهُۥ كُن فَيَكُونُ

    ر-و-دش-ي-أك-و-نق-و-ل

  • Hud 11:792 shared roots

    قَالُوا۟ لَقَدْ عَلِمْتَ مَا لَنَا فِى بَنَاتِكَ مِنْ حَقٍّ وَإِنَّكَ لَتَعْلَمُ مَا نُرِيدُ

    ر-و-دق-و-ل

  • Yusuf 12:612 shared roots

    قَالُوا۟ سَنُرَٰوِدُ عَنْهُ أَبَاهُ وَإِنَّا لَفَٰعِلُونَ

    ر-و-دق-و-ل

  • As-Saaffaat 37:1672 shared roots

    وَإِن كَانُوا۟ لَيَقُولُونَ

    ك-و-نق-و-ل

  • Hud 11:1072 shared roots

    خَٰلِدِينَ فِيهَا مَا دَامَتِ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتُ وَٱلْأَرْضُ إِلَّا مَا شَآءَ رَبُّكَ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ فَعَّالٌ لِّمَا يُرِيدُ

    ر-و-دش-ي-أ

  • Al-Israa 17:192 shared roots

    وَمَنْ أَرَادَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةَ وَسَعَىٰ لَهَا سَعْيَهَا وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ كَانَ سَعْيُهُم مَّشْكُورًا

    ر-و-دك-و-ن

Questions

Which verses are similar to Quran 16:40?

Verses close in meaning to Quran 16:40 include Quran 36:82 (Surah Yaseen), Quran 43:42 (Surah Az-Zukhruf), Quran 39:39 (Surah Az-Zumar), and Quran 75:17 (Surah Al-Qiyaama). For example, 36:82 reads: “His command is only when He intends a thing that He says to it, "Be," and it is.” These are ranked by comparing translations of every verse in the Qurʾān, so they are a measure of similar wording and theme — not a tafsīr ruling.

What does Quran 16:40 say?

In Saheeh International, Quran 16:40 (Surah An-Nahl, The Bee) reads: “Indeed, Our word to a thing when We intend it is but that We say to it, "Be," and it is.”

Which surah is verse 16:40 in?

Quran 16:40 is āyah 40 of Surah An-Nahl (The Bee), chapter 16 of the Qurʾān — a Meccan (Makkī) surah of 128 verses.

In how many languages can I read Quran 16:40?

Tartīl presents Quran 16:40 in the original Arabic alongside 34 translations, with audio recitation.