The Arabic alphabet
Arabic has 29 letters (counting the hamzah), written from right to left. The table gives each letter, its name and the nearest English sound. Sounds that English lacks are best learnt from a teacher or by listening to a reciter.
| Letter | Name | Sound | Letter | Name | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ا | alif | a (carries a vowel) | ض | dad | heavy d, from the side of the tongue |
| ب | ba | b | ط | ta (heavy) | heavy t |
| ت | ta | t | ظ | za (heavy) | heavy “th” as in “this” |
| ث | tha | th as in “think” | ع | ‘ain | a voiced sound from the middle of the throat |
| ج | jim | j | غ | ghain | gh, like a French r |
| ح | ha | a breathy h from the middle of the throat | ف | fa | f |
| خ | kha | kh, as in Scottish “loch” | ق | qaf | a deep k from the back of the tongue |
| د | dal | d | ك | kaf | k |
| ذ | dhal | th as in “this” | ل | lam | l |
| ر | ra | rolled r | م | mim | m |
| ز | zay | z | ن | nun | n |
| س | sin | s | و | waw | w / u |
| ش | shin | sh | ه | ha | h, from the bottom of the throat |
| ص | sad | heavy s | ء | hamzah | a glottal stop (as in “uh-oh”) |
| ي | ya | y / i |
Heavy and light letters
Seven letters are always pronounced heavy (full-mouthed):
خ ص ض غ ط ق ظkhussa daghtin qizThese seven are pronounced with a full, heavy mouth.
The others are usually light. Learn to tell apart letters that sound alike: ت – ط, س – ص – ث, ز – ذ – ظ, ه – ح, ك – ق, أ – ع, د – ض.
Say the letters aloud every day and write them in a notebook. Learn them alone first, then joined — which comes in the following lessons.
Listen and learn
Tap any letter to hear it, and choose a mark above the board to hear every letter with it.
Test yourself
Test yourself
Ten questions. Choose how you want to be asked.