البينة
al-Bayyinah
A name for each verse of the Quran, and in the plural (bayyināt) for all its verses: the clear proof that establishes truth against falsehood.
What it means
Al-bayyina means a clear proof. Faruqi says that the name applies to every verse of the Quran, and in the plural, bayyināt, to all its verses. Each verse is a clear evidence that establishes truth against falsehood. The word is used also for clear signs given to earlier prophets. The Quran uses bayyināt of the clear signs given to Jesus (2:87) and to other messengers. A Quranic chapter, the ninety-eighth, takes the word for its title, al-Bayyina, opening with the people who rejected faith until the clear proof came to them. The word reflects the Quran’s method of arguing from evidence.
Often misunderstood as
That verses are only pronouncements, when each is called a clear proof.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 26, listed as AL BAYYINAH. The definition is restated here.