Sunnah dibahagikan, dari segi kesahihan penyampaiannya (al sanad), kepada tiga bahagian, iaitu: mutawatir, masyhur dan khabar al-ahad. Maka jika sesuatu hadis diriwayatkan oleh satu kumpulan daripada Taabi'ut Taabi'in daripada satu kumpulan Taabi'in daripada satu kumpulan Sahabat daripada Rasulullah ﷺ, maka ia adalah mutawatir. Jika sesuatu hadis diriwayatkan oleh satu kumpulan daripada Taabi'ut Taabi'in daripada satu kumpulan Taabi'in daripada satu kumpulan Sahabat yang bilangannya tidak mencapai tahap tawatur, maka ia adalah masyhur, kerana Ummah menerimanya dengan penerimaan dan ia menjadi (terkenal) masyhur dalam kalangan Ummah. Dan jika sesuatu hadis diriwayatkan oleh seorang atau lebih, yang bilangannya tidak mencapai tahap tawatur, daripada Sahabat dan selepas mereka daripada Taabi'in dan Taabi'ut Taabi'in, maka ia adalah khabar al-ahad. Sunnah hanya terdiri daripada tiga bahagian ini. Namun, dari segi penunjukan maknanya terhadap kepastian (al-yaqin) atau kebarangkalian yang paling kuat (al-zhann), Sunnah hanya terbahagi kepada dua bahagian, kerana masyhur dianggap termasuk dalam kategori ahad, sebab jika sesuatu hadis diriwayatkan oleh sejumlah orang yang terpelihara daripada persepakatan untuk berdusta daripada Taabi'ut Taabi'in, daripada sejumlah lain Taabi'in yang terpelihara daripada persepakatan untuk berdusta, daripada sejumlah lain Sahabat yang dengan kata-katanya bukti yang muktamad dapat ditegakkan, maka ia adalah mutawatir. Ini bermaksud bahawa hadith mutawatir ialah hadith yang mempunyai bilangan perawi dalam setiap tiga peringkatnya mencapai tahap tawatur. Jika bilangan itu kurang pada salah satu peringkat, maka hadith tersebut ialah khabar al-ahad, sama ada bilangan perawi yang tidak mencukupi tahap tawatur itu berasal daripada para Sahabat, para Tabi'in, Tabi' al-Tabi'in, atau kesemua mereka; ia tetap dianggap khabar al-ahad, yang tidak memberi faedah keyakinan (yaqin), sebaliknya hanya memberi tahap kemungkinan yang paling kuat. Namun, disepakati bahawa hadith yang kekurangan bilangan perawi mencukupi daripada kalangan Sahabat tetapi mempunyai bilangan yang mencukupi daripada kalangan selain mereka dinamakan mashhur, kerana ia menjadi masyhur (terkenal) di kalangan umat. Walau bagaimanapun, hukumnya tidak berbeza daripada khabar al-ahad yang tidak memberi faedah keyakinan.

The Sunnah is divided regarding to its transmission authenticity (al sanad) into three divisions, they are: the mutawaatir, the mashhour and the khabar al aahaad. So if the Hadeeth is transmitted by a group of the Taabi'y al Taabi'ine from a group of the Taabi'ine from a group of the Sahaabah from the Messenger (SAW), then it is the mutawaatir. If the Hadeeth is transmitted by a group of the Taabi'y al Taabi'ine from a group of al Taabi'ine from a group of the Sahaabah whose number does not reach the extent of the tawaator, then it is the mashhour, because the Ummah received it with acceptance and it became (famous) mashhour within the Ummah. And if the Hadeeth is narrated by one or more whose number does not reach the extent of the tawaator from the Sahaabah and who was after them of the Taabi'ine and Taabi'y al Taabi'ine, then it is khabar al aahaad. The Sunnah is only these three divisions. However, with respect to its denotation to the certainty (al yaqeen) or the most probability (al dthan) the Sunnah is only of two divisions, because the mashhour is considered to be of the aahaad, because if the Hadeeth is narrated by a number of people that are secured from the collusion (agreement) to lie of the Taabi'y al Taabi'ine, from another number of al Taabi'ine that are secured from the collusion to lie, from another number of the Sahaabah by whose saying a decisive proof would be established, then it is the mutawaatir. It means that the mutawaatir is what has a number of narrators in everyone of its three stages reaches the extent of the tawaator, but if that is lacked in one of the stages then the Hadeeth is khabar al aahaad, whether the insufficient number of narrators for the extent of the tawaator are of the Sahaabah, or of the Taabi'ine or of the Taabi'y al Taabi'ine or of all of them, it is then considered to be khabar al aahaad, that does not denote the certainty, it only denotes the most probability, but it is agreed to name al mashhour that which lacked the sufficient number of the Sahaabah, but it has a sufficient number of the others, because it became mashhour (well known between the Ummah), whereas, the verdict for it is not different from khabar al aahaad which does not denote the certainty.