What should a husband do if he swore that his wife must return his abusive words with the exact same abusive words to avoid divorce, yet she repeatedly abuses him and utters the word of divorce? Does she become divorced if he does not return her words with the word of divorce that she uttered, knowing that he does not wish to divorce her?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
If a man says to his wife: "If I do not reply to you with the exact same words, you are divorced," and she says to him: "You are divorced," then he is not obligated to reply to her with the exact same phrase. This is because his intention was to respond to an insult, and the wife's words are not an insult. Oaths are based on intentions, and a general expression is specified by custom, habit, and intellect.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/69969
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 69969
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy