فلى1 فَلَى رأْسَهُ, (M, Mgh, K,) and ثِيَابَهُ, (Mgh,) [aor. ـِ inf. n. فَلْىٌ; (M, Mgh;) and رَأْسَهُ ↓ فلّىalso; (K; [but not in my copy of the TA;]) He searched his head, (M, Mgh, K,) and his clothes, (Mgh,) for lice: (M, Mgh, K:) [and it appears from an explanation below (see 8) that افتلى رَأْسَهُ perhaps signifies the same:] or one says, فَلَيْتُ رَأْسَهُ مِنَ القَمْلِ [I searched his head for lice]: (S:) or فَلَيْتُ رَأْسِى, aor.  as above, and so the inf. n., signifies I cleared my head of lice. (Msb.) [See also الفِلَآءُ, below.] In the saying of 'Amr Ibn-Maadee-kerib, تَرَاهُ كَالثَّغَامِ يُغَلُّّ مِسْكًا يَسْوْءُ الفَالِيَاتِ إِذَا فَلَيْنِى[Thou seest it (meaning the white hair intermixing with black) like the thagham (the plant so called) inserted in musk, grieving the lousing women when they louse me], فَلَيْنِى is for فَلَيْنَنِى, (T, S,) the two ن being deemed difficult of utterance; (T;) as Akh says, he has rejected the latter ن because it is merely a preservative to the verb [lest its affix should be supposed to form an essential part of it], whereas the former ن may not be rejected, because it is the pronoun of the verb. (S.) b2: [Hence,] فَلَى الشِّعْرَ, (ISk, T, S, K,) aor.  and inf. n.  as above, (TA,) (tropical:)  He considered, and endeavoured to understand, the poetry, and elicited its meanings, (ISk, T, S, K, TA,) and what was strange of it: (ISk, S, TA:) or, accord. to the A, he investigated the meanings of the poetry: one says, اِفْلِ هٰذَا البَيْتَ فَإِنَّهُ صَعْبٌ (tropical:)  [Investigate thou the meaning of this verse, for it is difficult]. (TA.) [Freytag has mentioned فَلَا, in art. فلو, as signifying “ Disquisivit,” and as followed by عن; from the Deewán of the Hudhalees.] and فَلَى الأَمْرَ (assumed tropical:)  He considered, or examined, the various modes of the affair, or case, endeavouring to obtain a clear knowledge of them, and looked to its result. (T, TA.) And فَلَيْتُ القُومَ بِعَيْنِى (assumed tropical:)  [I examined the people, or party, with my eye, in order to know them]: and فَلَيْتُ خَبَرَهُمْ (assumed tropical:)  [I examined their state, or case, in order to know it]. (TA.) And فَلَاهُ فِى عَقْلِهِ, (T, M, K, TA,) aor.  as above, (T, TA,) and so the inf. n., (M, TA,) (tropical:)  He looked, or examined, to see what was his intelligence: (T, TA:) or he tried, or tested, him, in respect of his intelligence. (M, K, TA.) b3:  فَلَيْتُ القَوْمَ I entered amid the breaks, or interspaces, of the people; (T, TA; *) as also فَلَوْتُهُمْ; (T;) and so ↓ أَفْلَيْتُهُمْ. (TA.) And فَلَى المَفَازَةَ He passed through the مفازة [i. e. desert, or waterless desert]. (TA.) b4: فَلَاهُ بَالسَّيْفِ, aor. ـْ (K, TA,) inf. n. فَلْىٌ, (TA,) signifies the same as فَلَاهُ, aor. ـْ (K, TA,) inf. n. فَلْوٌ. (TA.) See the latter verb in art. فلو.A2:  فَلِىَ i. q. اِنْقَطَعَ [It, or he, was cut, or cut off, &c.]. (IAar, T, K.) 2 فَلَّىَ see the first sentence above.4 أَفْلَىَ see 1, near the end of the paragraph.5 تفلّى He applied himself, as to a task, to the act of searching his head for lice. (T, * M, TA.) 6 تفالت الحُمُرُ The asses scratched, scraped, or rubbed, one another; as though they were lousing one another. (M, TA.) b2:  See also 10.8 يَفْتَلُونَ الفَلَاةَ, (T,) or المَكَانَ, (K, *) (tropical:)  They  depasture the herbage (T, K *) of the فلاة [or desert, or waterless desert, &c.], (T,) or of the place, (K,) and seek for the portions of herbage that are beginning to dry up therein; like as [is done when] the head is searched for lice (كَمَا يُفْتَلَى الرَّأْسُ or كما يُفْلَى الرأس accord. to two transcripts from the T). (T in arts. فلو and فلى of the TT.) [This meaning of the verb is expl. (imperfectly) in art. فلو, to which it does not belong.]10 استفلى رَأْسَهُ, and ↓ تفالى, (S, K,) i. e. تفالىهُوَ [not تفالى رأسه], (S,) He desired that his head might be searched for lice. (S, K.) A2:  And استفلاهُ He exposed himself to have his head struck and cut with the sword: (M, TA:) a poet says, أَمَاتَرَانِى رَابِطَ الجَنَانِأَفْلِيهِ بِالسَّيْفِ إِذَا اسْتَفْلَانِى[Dost thou not see me to be strong of heart? I  will strike and cut his head with the sword when he exposes himself to be so struck &c.]فِلْيَةٌ, mentioned in this art. by Freytag, with فَلَالِىٌّ as its pl., is taken by him from a mistranscription in the CK in art. فل: see فِلِّيَّةٌ in that art.]الفلَآءُ, like كِسَآء [in measure], means فلآء الشعر, [evidently, I think, فِلَآءُ الشَّعَرَ, or the first word may be a mistranscription for فَلْىُ,] i. e. اخذك ما فيه [lit. Thy taking what is in it, in which “ it ”refers to the شعر: app. a euphemism for the taking of lice from the hair: if so, it may be an inf. n., like فَلْىٌ; (see 1, first sentence;) or it may be a simple subst., like what here follows]: mentioned  by IAmb, from his companions. (TA.) فِلَايَةٌ [The act of searching the head for lice;] the subst. from فَلَى رَأْسَهُ signifying “ he searched his head for lice. ” (Lth, * T, * K.) [See also the next preceding paragraph.]فَالٍ act. part. n. of 1: fem. فَالِيَةٌ.] فَالِيَاتٌ and فَوَالٍ [are pls. of فَالِيَةٌ and] signify Women who search the head for lice. (T, TA.) See an ex. of the former pl. in the verse cited in the first paragraph. b2:  فَالِيَةُ الأَفَاعِى (in which the former word is a pl. [in meaning], M, TA) signifies [lit. The lousers of the vipers; meaning,] accord. to the A, certain species of the kind [of beetles] called خَنَافِس [pl. of خُنْفَسَآء], speckled, found at the holes of the serpents, which they louse: (TA:) or a certain خنفسآء, speckled (M, K) with [the colour termed]صُحْمَة, which is found at the holes [of serpents &c.], and is the mistress of خَنَافِس; (M;) which is familiar with scorpions and serpents; so that when it comes forth from a hole [thereof], it makes known their existence [therein]: (K:) or certain small things like خنَافس, speckled; which are familiar with scorpions and serpents; so that when they are seen in the hole [thereof] it is known that behind them are scorpions and serpents: (T:) or certain insects (دَوَابُّ) that are found at the holes of the [lizards called] ضِبَاب [pl. of ضَبُّ]; so that when they come forth, it is known that the ضَبّ is coming forth inevitably. (M.) Hence one says, اتتكم فَالِيَةُ الأَفَاعِى, (IAar, T, M, K, *) meaning (assumed tropical:)  The beginning of evil to be looked for [has come to you], (IAar, T,) or the beginnings of evil [hare come to you]; (K;) which is a prov. (IAar, T.) b3:  And [hence] اِبْنُ الفَوَالِى means The جَانّ; i. e. the serpent [so called]. (T in art. بنى.) فَالِيَةٌ [fem. of فَالٍ, q. v. b2:  And also] A knife. (T.)