Bu so'zning ildizi uchta harfdan iborat: alif, laam va ha. Lug'atlarda uchraydigan turli xil hosilalarning ma'nolari quyidagicha:

The root of this word consists of the three letters, alif, laam, and haa and the connotations of various derivations, as one finds in lexicons are as follows:

Chalkashib qolgan yoki hayron bo'lgan.

• Became confused or perplexed.

• Kimgadir panoh izlash yoki u bilan aloqa o‘rnatish orqali tinchlik va ruhiy xotirjamlikka erishilgan.

• Achieved peace and mental calm by seeking refuge with someone or establishing relations with him.

• Biror kutilayotgan falokat yoki ofatdan qo‘rqib qoldi va unga kerakli boshpana berildi.

• Became frightened of some impending mishap or disaster, and someone gave him the necessary shelter.

• Uning unga bo‘lgan kuchli muhabbati tufayli, u boshqasiga shu qadar ishtiyoq bilan yuz burdi.

• Turned to another eagerly, due to the intensity of his feelings for him.

Yo'qolgan tuyaning bolasi onasini topgach, unga yopishib olish uchun shoshildi.

• The lost offspring of the she-camel rushed to snuggle up to its mother on finding it.

• Yashirin bo‘ldi yoki berkitildi.

• Became hidden, or concealed.

Yuqori darajaga ko‘tarildi.

• Got elevated.

Sevimli.

• Adored.

• Ibodat qilingan.

• Offered worship to.

Agar biz bu asl ma'nolar ustida mulohaza yuritsak, fe'l qanday qilib ibodat qilish harakatini, ism esa ibodat qilinadigan narsani anglatishga kelganini tushunish uchun zarur tasavvurga ega bo'lishimiz mumkin. Bu borada e'tiborda tutilishi kerak bo'lgan to'rtta jihat bor:

If we reflect upon these original meanings, we can gain the necessary idea of how the verb came to mean the act of worship and the noun to denote the object of worship. There are four considerations to bear in mind in this connection:

Insonda biror kishiga nisbatan ma'lum darajada sig'inish hissini uyg'otadigan omillarning eng asosiysi — uning o'zi boshqa birovning ehtiyoji yoki qiyinchiligi ichida bo'lishidir. Agar kishi boshqa birovni o'zining tashvishini bartaraf etishga, ehtiyojlarini qondirishga, unga boshpana berib, xavf paytida himoya qilishga va qayg'uli qalbini tinchlantirishga qodir deb ishonmasa, o'sha odamga sig'inishni hatto tasavvur ham qila olmaydi. Shubhasiz, yuqoridagi e'tiqod boshqasining maqomi, qudrati va kuchi jihatidan ustunligiga bo'lgan ishonch bilan birga keladi. Shuningdek, insonning ehtiyojlari oddiy berish-olish jarayonida qondirilganda — bu jarayon o'z ko'z oldida ochiq-oydin sodir bo'lganda — bu boshqa kishiga nisbatan hurmat, hatto sig'inish hissini ham uyg'otmaydi. Masalan, agar men pulga muhtoj bo'lib, ish so'rab, uni olib, haq to'lansa, butun bitim o'z sezgilarim doirasida bo'lib o'tgani uchun va pul berilishining sabablarini to'liq bilib turganim uchun, ish beruvchimga hech qanday sig'inish istagini his qilmagan bo'lardim. Bunday tuyg'u faqat shaxsning, uning qudratining yoki boshqalarning ehtiyojlarini qondirish yoki voqealarga ta'sir qilish qobiliyatining atrofida biror sirli jihat bo'lganda paydo bo'ladi. Shuning uchun sig'inish obyektini ifodalash uchun tanlangan so'z ma'nolarida sirlilik, hayratlanish va maqom jihatidan ustunlik va boshqa ma'nolarni o'z ichiga oladi. Nihoyat, agar kishi boshqasini o'z ehtiyojlarini qondirishga, boshpana va himoya berishga, bezovta qalbni tinchlantirib, unga osoyishtalik va xotirjamlik bag'ishlashga qodir deb hisoblasa, u tabiiy ravishda, o'z-o'zidan o'sha insonga intiladi.

Foremost among the factors which engender a sentiment of some degree of adoration for some one is a person’s own state of being in distress or need. He cannot even conceive of worshipping someone unless he has reason to believe that someone to be in a position to remove his distress, to fulfil his needs, to give him shelter and protect him in time of danger, and soothe his troubled heart. It goes without saying that the above belief is accompanied by a belief also in the superiority of the other in status, power, and strength. It is also a matter of fact that where any of the needs of a human being are met under the ordinary process of give and take, which takes place perceptibly before one’s own eyes, it leads to no sense of reverence, much less of adoration, for the other. For example, if I should be in need of money and, having applied for, and been given a job, am paid for it, since the whole transaction would take place within the full ken of my senses, and I would be fully aware of the circumstances or the reason for giving me the money, I would experience not the slightest desire to offer my employer any adoration. That sentiment arises only when there is some element of mystery surrounding the personality, the power, or the ability of the other to fulfil peoples’ needs or to influence events. That is why the word chosen to denote an object of worship includes in its meanings the senses of mystery, perplexity, and superiority in status, etc. Lastly, it is only natural that if one believes another to be in a position to fulfil one’s needs, to provide shelter and protection, to soothe a disturbed heart and fill it with peace and calm, one turns eagerly to that person as a matter of course.

Shunday qilib, yuqoridagilardan xulosa qilishimiz mumkinki, "ilaah" so'zining ma'nosiga boshqalarning ehtiyojlarini qondirish, ularga boshpana va himoya berish, ularning ruhini tashvish va bezovtalikdan xoli qilish, ustunlik hamda buning barchasini amalga oshirish uchun zarur vakolat va qudrat, qandaydir ma'noda sirli bo'lish yoki odamlar ko'zidan yashirin bo'lish, shuningdek, odamlarning unga intilib yuzlanishi kabi xususiyatlar kiradi.

We may therefore safely conclude from the above that the connotation of the word ilaah includes the capacities to fulfil the needs of others, to give them shelter and protection, to relieve their minds of distress and agitation, superiority, and the requisite authority and power to do all these, to be mysterious in some way or hidden from men’s eyes, and the turning of men eagerly to him.