The linguistic definition of ′alaq علق (singular 'alaqah علقة) is "leech", "medicinal leech", "coagulated blood", "blood clot", or "the early stage of the embryo" [REF].
The term ′alaqah is the second stage of human prenatal development (sura Al-Mu'minoon 23: 12-14) which "descriptively encompasses the primary external and internal features" of the early embryo [REF].