A man who divorces and says: I meant a woman other than my wife

Sumayt al-Sadusi (may Allah have mercy on him) narrated: I proposed marriage to a woman. They said to me: We will not marry her to you until you divorce your wife. I said: I have already divorced her three times. So they married me to her. After the marriage they saw that my wife was still with me, and they said: Did you not divorce your wife? I said: I did. So-and-so, the daughter of so-and-so, was married to me and I divorced her; this one I did not divorce. Then I went to Shaqiq bin Mijza'ah, who was intending to go to Sayyiduna Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him). I said to him: Ask the Commander of the Believers about this. He asked him, and Sayyiduna Uthman said: His intention is what counts.

Tawus was asked: A man was sitting with his wife on a cushion, and, addressing his wife but intending the cushion, he said: You are divorced. What is the ruling? Tawus (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I do not see anything binding on you.

Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Divorce is whatever is intended by it.

Ata (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If a man says to his wife, I have set you free, and he intended divorce, then a divorce takes place.

Masruq (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Divorce is whatever is intended by it.

Abu Thumamah (may Allah have mercy on him) narrated that Kinanah bin Naqb (may Allah have mercy on him) had a wife who had borne him children during the Jahiliyyah. Kinanah said to her: The part of you above your waist is free. The woman took her dispute to Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him). Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the man: Did you intend divorce? He said: Yes. Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Then we have separated her from you.

Al-Hasan (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If a man says to his wife, You are free, it is one divorce, and he has the greater right to take her back.

Isa bin Hittan said: Rayyan bin Sabrah al-Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) was sitting in the gathering of his people. He picked up a date-stone and said: The date-stone is divorced; the date-stone is divorced three times. The case was brought before Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), who asked him: What did you intend? He said: I intended to divorce my wife. And Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) separated the two of them.

A man was brought to Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) who had said to his wife: "Your rope is on your neck." Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) about it, and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) replied: "Tell him to meet me during the Hajj season." The man came during the Hajj season, and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) sent for Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said to the man: "I ask you by Allah, what was your intention?" He said: "I intended to divorce my wife." So Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) separated the two of them.