In another verse Allah (swt) mentions the scorner, saying:

 وَيْلٌ لِّكُلِّ هُمَزَةٍ لُّمَزَةٍ

(Woe to every scorner and mocker) (Al-Humaza: 1)

The scorner person is the one who mocks at people even by a gesture. For example, he may see a lame person and mocks at him either by imitating his walk or by ridiculing him. Such an act is a sign of poor faith. The scorner person is a backbiter who slanders and defames people. Not only that, he always spreads calumnies among people to arise hostilities between them.

Thus, the scorner (humaza) is the one who backbites and ridiculous others stealthily, by a sign or an act, while the mocker (lumaza) is the one who ridiculous others in public. Backbiting implies the weakness of the backbiter, otherwise, he would do it openly. This person is also:

(  مَّشَّاءٍ بِنَمِيمٍ … ) (…going about with malicious gossip): Going about with malicious gossip always takes the side of evil and denotes spreading calumnies among people to harm them. Those people conceal the good deeds of people and expose their evil ones, and they tell lies if they cannot know about people’s evil. The Arabic word of (going about) comes in the exaggeration form to indicate that this person, habitually and excessively, intends to spread hatred among people and sour their relations by gossip and telling lies. Thus, such a person causes discord among people. The Prophet (saws) said:

  “The beater of false tales would never enter heaven.”[1]

That is because he overhears people’s talk and carries it to others to spread animosity and destroy their relations. The Prophet (saws) said:

“Shall I tell you who is the worst of you? Those who go about slandering, causing mischief between friends in order to separate them, and desiring to lead the innocent into wrong action.”[2]

Causing mischief among people is the worst act, so that the Prophet (saws) said to his companions:

“Shall I not inform you of something more excellent in degree than fasting, prayer and almsgiving? The people replied: Yes, Prophet of Allah! He said: It is putting things right between people, spoiling them is the shaver (destructive).”[3]

[1] Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of: Good Manners, Chapter of: What is disliked of Namima, Hadith No. 6056.

[2] Musnad al-Imam Ahmad: Musnad of : The Tribes, from Hadith narrate by Asma bint Yazid, Hadith No. 27599.

[3] Sunan at-Tirmidhi: Chapters on the description of the Day of Judgement, Ar-Riqaq, and Al-Wara’, Hadith No. 2509.