How do we respond to those who deny synonymy in the Qur’an and claim that words such as (رَيْب and شَكّ and ظَنّ), and (يَعْرِضُونَ and يَصْدِفُونَ and يَتَوَلَّوْنَ), and (هَلُمَّ and تَعَالَ and أَقْبِلْ) do not share the same meaning?

Scholars have differed regarding the occurrence of synonymy (taraduf) in language and in the Qur’an. The majority of scholars affirm the occurrence of synonymy in language, citing examples such as "asad" (lion) and "sab‘" (beast), "julūs" (sitting) and "qu‘ūd" (sitting), and "burr" (wheat) and "ḥinṭah" (wheat).

However, some scholars, such as Ibn Faris, Tha‘lab, and Al-Mubarrad, deny synonymy, arguing that everything presumed to be synonymous is, in reality, distinct in its attributes, and that every two names for a single referent have a difference in an attribute or a relation.

As for synonymy in the Qur’an, scholars have differed concerning it. Some have completely denied its existence, while others have affirmed it but consider it to be extremely rare. Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah held that synonymy in the words of the Qur’an is either rare or non-existent, and that this is part of the miraculous nature of the Qur’an.

To understand the differences between words that appear to be synonymous, one can refer to books such as "Al-Furuq al-Lughawiyyah" by Abu Hilal al-Askari, "Al-Kulliyyat" by Al-Kafawi, and "Basa’ir Dhawi al-Tamyiz" by Al-Fayruzabadi.