A new word or phrase from the Hans Wehr dictionary, every Wednesday.
تمسك بأهدابه (bi-ahdābihī) to be most devoted to s.o., be at s.o.’s beck and call, be under s.o.’s thumb
Root: ه-د-ب
Page: 1198*
Example: “في الأَيّامِ الأَخيرةِ مِنْ حَياتِهِ، كُنْتُ أَتَمَسَّكُ بِأَهْدابِهِ نادِماً على بُعْدي مِنهُ طِوالَ تِلكَ السَّنَوات”
Translation: “in his final days, I was at his beck and call, regretting my distance from him throughout those years”
Notes:
- This phrase literally translates as “to hold onto someone’s eyelashes”!
Revise all of the vocab from the series on Quizlet:
* The Hans Wehr Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic, 4th Edition
The Arabic Pages 
I wonder if the literal translation actually refers to the second meaning of this word,
طرف الثَّوب الذي لم يُنسَج
To mean something like “to hold on to his fringes” or “to hold on to him by the edges of his clothes.”
Love the series!
Likely! I think the second meaning is actually a metaphorical derivation of the first: the frayed/fringed edges of fabric resemble eyelashes 😄
Also likely!
how interesting !