Maktab QuranSurah Al-Mutaffifin opens with a woe aimed at something startlingly ordinary: traders who demand full measure when receiving but shave the scale when giving. From that everyday fraud it ascends to the cosmic ledger — the record of the wicked in Sijjin, the record of the righteous in Illiyyun, written and witnessed — the Day mankind stands before the Lord of the worlds, and the reversal of fortunes when those who once laughed at the believers are laughed at from couches.
Surah Al-Mutaffifin is the 83rd chapter of the Qur'an, a Meccan surah of 36 verses. Its name means “Those Who Give Less Than Due”, and it opens on people who take full measure from others but shortchange them in return. It then contrasts two registers — sijjeen and 'illiyyun — and two sets of faces on the Day of Recompense.
Surah Al-Mutaffifin at a glance
| Surah number | 83 of 114 |
|---|---|
| Arabic name | سُورَةُ المُطَفِّفِينَ |
| Name in English | Al-Mutaffifin — “Defrauding” |
| Verses (ayahs) | 36 |
| Revealed in | Makkah |
| Juz | 30 |
| Length in the Mushaf | about 3 pages |
Short measure
The surah opens with woe to those who give less than due: who take a full measure when receiving from people, but cause loss when they measure or weigh for them. It asks whether they do not think they will be resurrected for a tremendous Day when mankind stands before the Lord of the worlds.
Two registers
It then names two records. The record of the wicked is in sijjeen, and the surah asks what sijjeen is before answering that it is a register inscribed. Those who deny the Day of Recompense call the verses “legends of the former peoples”, and the surah says the true cause is a stain that has covered their hearts from what they were earning — and that they will be partitioned from their Lord that Day. The record of the righteous is in 'illiyyun, likewise a register inscribed, witnessed by those brought near.
Who laughs last
The surah closes on a reversal. Those who committed crimes used to laugh at the believers, exchange derisive glances when passing them, and return to their people jesting. On that Day the believers are the ones who laugh, on adorned couches, observing.
Read Surah Al-Mutaffifin in full
The Arabic below is the Uthmani script, with a Roman transliteration to help you sound out each verse and the Sahih International English translation of the meaning. If you are learning to recite it, read the Arabic line first and use the transliteration only to check yourself — leaning on it slows real reading down.
Listen to Surah Al-Mutaffifin (Mishary Al-Afasy)
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ وَيْلٌۭ لِّلْمُطَفِّفِينَ
Wailul lil mutaffifeen
Woe to those who give less [than due],
ٱلَّذِينَ إِذَا ٱكْتَالُوا۟ عَلَى ٱلنَّاسِ يَسْتَوْفُونَ
Allazeena izak taaloo 'alan naasi yastawfoon
Who, when they take a measure from people, take in full.
وَإِذَا كَالُوهُمْ أَو وَّزَنُوهُمْ يُخْسِرُونَ
Wa izaa kaaloohum aw wazanoohum yukhsiroon
But if they give by measure or by weight to them, they cause loss.
أَلَا يَظُنُّ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ أَنَّهُم مَّبْعُوثُونَ
Alaa yazunnu ulaaa'ika annahum mab'oosoon
Do they not think that they will be resurrected
لِيَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍۢ
Li Yawmin 'Azeem
For a tremendous Day -
يَوْمَ يَقُومُ ٱلنَّاسُ لِرَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ
Yawma yaqoomun naasu li Rabbil 'aalameen
The Day when mankind will stand before the Lord of the worlds?
كَلَّآ إِنَّ كِتَٰبَ ٱلْفُجَّارِ لَفِى سِجِّينٍۢ
Kallaaa inna kitaabal fujjaari lafee Sijjeen
No! Indeed, the record of the wicked is in sijjeen.
وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ مَا سِجِّينٌۭ
Wa maa adraaka maa Sijjeen
And what can make you know what is sijjeen?
كِتَٰبٌۭ مَّرْقُومٌۭ
Kitaabum marqoom
It is [their destination recorded in] a register inscribed.
وَيْلٌۭ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ لِّلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
Wailuny yawma'izil lil mukazzibeen
Woe, that Day, to the deniers,
ٱلَّذِينَ يُكَذِّبُونَ بِيَوْمِ ٱلدِّينِ
Allazeena yukazziboona bi yawmid deen
Who deny the Day of Recompense.
وَمَا يُكَذِّبُ بِهِۦٓ إِلَّا كُلُّ مُعْتَدٍ أَثِيمٍ
Wa maa yukazzibu biheee illaa kullu mu'tadin aseem
And none deny it except every sinful transgressor.
إِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِ ءَايَٰتُنَا قَالَ أَسَٰطِيرُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ
Izaa tutlaa'alaihi aayaatunaa qaala asaateerul awwaleen
When Our verses are recited to him, he says, "Legends of the former peoples."
كَلَّا ۖ بَلْ ۜ رَانَ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِم مَّا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ
Kallaa bal raana 'alaa quloobihim maa kaanoo yaksiboon
No! Rather, the stain has covered their hearts of that which they were earning.
كَلَّآ إِنَّهُمْ عَن رَّبِّهِمْ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ لَّمَحْجُوبُونَ
Kallaaa innahum 'ar Rabbihim yawma'izil lamah jooboon
No! Indeed, from their Lord, that Day, they will be partitioned.
ثُمَّ إِنَّهُمْ لَصَالُوا۟ ٱلْجَحِيمِ
Summa innahum lasaa lul jaheem
Then indeed, they will [enter and] burn in Hellfire.
ثُمَّ يُقَالُ هَٰذَا ٱلَّذِى كُنتُم بِهِۦ تُكَذِّبُونَ
Summa yuqaalu haazal lazee kuntum bihee tukazziboon
Then it will be said [to them], "This is what you used to deny."
كَلَّآ إِنَّ كِتَٰبَ ٱلْأَبْرَارِ لَفِى عِلِّيِّينَ
Kallaaa inna kitaabal abraari lafee'Illiyyeen
No! Indeed, the record of the righteous is in 'illiyyun.
وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ مَا عِلِّيُّونَ
Wa maaa adraaka maa 'Illiyyoon
And what can make you know what is 'illiyyun?
كِتَٰبٌۭ مَّرْقُومٌۭ
Kitaabum marqoom
It is [their destination recorded in] a register inscribed
يَشْهَدُهُ ٱلْمُقَرَّبُونَ
Yashhadu hul muqarra boon
Which is witnessed by those brought near [to Allah].
إِنَّ ٱلْأَبْرَارَ لَفِى نَعِيمٍ
Innal abraara lafee Na'eem
Indeed, the righteous will be in pleasure
عَلَى ٱلْأَرَآئِكِ يَنظُرُونَ
'Alal araaa'iki yanzuroon
On adorned couches, observing.
تَعْرِفُ فِى وُجُوهِهِمْ نَضْرَةَ ٱلنَّعِيمِ
Ta'rifu fee wujoohihim nadratan na'eem
You will recognize in their faces the radiance of pleasure.
يُسْقَوْنَ مِن رَّحِيقٍۢ مَّخْتُومٍ
Yusqawna mir raheeqim makhtoom
They will be given to drink [pure] wine [which was] sealed.
خِتَٰمُهُۥ مِسْكٌۭ ۚ وَفِى ذَٰلِكَ فَلْيَتَنَافَسِ ٱلْمُتَنَٰفِسُونَ
Khitaamuhoo misk; wa fee zaalika falyatanaafasil Mutanaafisoon
The last of it is musk. So for this let the competitors compete.
وَمِزَاجُهُۥ مِن تَسْنِيمٍ
Wa mizaajuhoo min Tasneem
And its mixture is of Tasneem,
عَيْنًۭا يَشْرَبُ بِهَا ٱلْمُقَرَّبُونَ
'Ainaiy yashrabu bihal muqarraboon
A spring from which those near [to Allah] drink.
إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ أَجْرَمُوا۟ كَانُوا۟ مِنَ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ يَضْحَكُونَ
Innal lazeena ajramoo kaanoo minal lazeena aamanoo yadhakoon
Indeed, those who committed crimes used to laugh at those who believed.
وَإِذَا مَرُّوا۟ بِهِمْ يَتَغَامَزُونَ
Wa izaa marroo bihim yataghaamazoon
And when they passed by them, they would exchange derisive glances.
وَإِذَا ٱنقَلَبُوٓا۟ إِلَىٰٓ أَهْلِهِمُ ٱنقَلَبُوا۟ فَكِهِينَ
Wa izan qalabooo ilaaa ahlihimun qalaboo fakiheen
And when they returned to their people, they would return jesting.
وَإِذَا رَأَوْهُمْ قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ لَضَآلُّونَ
Wa izaa ra awhum qaalooo inna haaa'ulaaa'i ladaaal loon
And when they saw them, they would say, "Indeed, those are truly lost."
وَمَآ أُرْسِلُوا۟ عَلَيْهِمْ حَٰفِظِينَ
Wa maaa ursiloo 'alaihim haafizeen
But they had not been sent as guardians over them.
فَٱلْيَوْمَ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مِنَ ٱلْكُفَّارِ يَضْحَكُونَ
Fal yawmal lazeena aamanoo minal kuffaari yadhakoon
So Today those who believed are laughing at the disbelievers,
عَلَى ٱلْأَرَآئِكِ يَنظُرُونَ
'Alal araaa'iki yanzuroon
On adorned couches, observing.
هَلْ ثُوِّبَ ٱلْكُفَّارُ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْعَلُونَ
Hal suwwibal kuffaaru maa kaanoo yaf'aloon
Have the disbelievers [not] been rewarded [this Day] for what they used to do?
Learning Surah Al-Mutaffifin
The sijjeen and 'illiyyun passages are built on the same question-and-answer pattern, which makes them easy to confuse. Memorise them as a deliberate pair and note which comes first.
Why memorize Surah Al-Mutaffifin?
Because it makes honesty a memorized instinct. This is the surah of business ethics, weights and measures, and karmic reversal — students who deal in trade or work with money often choose it deliberately, and its 36 ayahs sit comfortably in a two-to-three-week window.
How long does Surah Al-Mutaffifin take to memorize?
Honest answer: it depends on your daily portion and whether someone is correcting you. Surah Al-Mutaffifin is about 41 lines of mushaf text. Here is what that means at three realistic paces — each assuming you also run the revision cycle (which is what makes it permanent):
| Pace | New memorization per day | Time to finish Surah Al-Mutaffifin | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Relaxed | ~3 lines | about 2 weeks | Busy adults, first-time memorizers |
| Steady | ~5 lines | about 9 days | Most students — the sweet spot |
| Focused | ~10 lines | about 5 days | Experienced memorizers, school holidays |
Add roughly a consolidation week at the end — the point where you can recite the whole surah to a listener without prompts. Our guide to how long the whole Quran takes uses the same arithmetic.
The smart way to memorize Surah Al-Mutaffifin
The surah is a courtroom in three registers: the crime and the charge sheet — fraud in the scales, and Sijjin where the sinners' record is inscribed (1–17); the counter-record — Illiyyun and the delight of the righteous, the sealed nectar whose seal is musk, 'so for this let the competitors compete' (18–28); and the courtroom reversal — the criminals who laughed, winked and mocked, now watched from couches by those they mocked (29–36). Memorize the two records as mirrored passages — their parallel phrasing ('And what can make you know what Sijjin/Illiyyun is?') is deliberate and makes them easier as a pair than alone.
A milestone plan for Surah Al-Mutaffifin
At the steady pace (~5 lines a day), Surah Al-Mutaffifin breaks into four milestones. Print our free planner PDF and mark them off:
| Portion | New-memorization time | Cumulative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milestone 1 | Ayahs 1–9 | ~2 days | Day 2 |
| Milestone 2 | Ayahs 10–18 | ~2 days | Day 4 |
| Milestone 3 | Ayahs 19–27 | ~2 days | Day 6 |
| Milestone 4 | Ayahs 28–36 | ~2 days | Day 8 |
Sabaq, sabqi, manzil — the three gears
Memorize new lines (sabaq), keep this week's lines warm (sabqi), and cycle everything older (manzil) — three gears that together make memorization permanent instead of temporary. The pattern is centuries old because it works. Get it as a printable system in our free Quran memorization planner, or run it with a teacher on the Hifz course.
Don't memorize your mistakes
The most expensive error in memorization is invisible: reciting to yourself, you cannot catch your own mispronunciations — and repetition welds them in. This is why every serious hifz program pairs students with a listening teacher. Ours work one-to-one on a live synchronized Quran page, correcting letter by letter, with female teachers available for women and girls. The trial lesson is free.