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What is the ruling on the following statements, in order: "If you leave without my permission, there will be something other than beating," "Don't make me say something else," and "I will divorce you" — if divorce was intended? And does the wife's statement, "Work is one thing, and you are another," negate the husband's choice between him and her work? And does the mere fact of not choosing the husband constitute a divorce?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Your statements to your wife: "There will be something else besides hitting," and "Don't make me say something else," and "I will divorce you" do not constitute a divorce. Rather, it is a threat or a promise of divorce that has no consequence. Divorce does not occur merely by a promise or a threat, nor does it occur except with an explicit utterance. So, if the husband intended it in his heart without uttering it, it does not occur.

As for your statement: "Either me or your job," and your wife responded by refusing the choice, no divorce occurs by this, even if you intended divorce with this choice, because the wife rejected the option. And if you did not intend divorce with this choice, then no divorce occurs at all, because it is among the ambiguous expressions (kinayat) that require intention or an indication of the situation. Therefore, there is no blame upon you for allowing your wife to return to work.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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