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The Arabic alphabet, letter by letter

This grid brings together the 28 letters of the Arabic alphabet and the hamza. For each one you see its name, Latin transcription, four forms and a translated example word. The “Listen” button plays the letter if your device has an Arabic voice.

  • ا
    Alifa / ā
    Isolated
    ا
    Initial
    ا
    Medial
    ‍ا
    Final
    ‍ا

    أسد asad — lion

    Long vowel “a”; carrier of hamza (أ, إ).

  • ب
    Bā'b
    Isolated
    ب
    Initial
    ب‍
    Medial
    ‍ب‍
    Final
    ‍ب

    باب bāb — door

  • ت
    Tā't
    Isolated
    ت
    Initial
    ت‍
    Medial
    ‍ت‍
    Final
    ‍ت

    تمر tamr — dates

  • ث
    Thā'th (ṯ)
    Isolated
    ث
    Initial
    ث‍
    Medial
    ‍ث‍
    Final
    ‍ث

    ثعلب thaʿlab — fox

    Like English “th” in “think”.

  • ج
    Jīmj (ǧ)
    Isolated
    ج
    Initial
    ج‍
    Medial
    ‍ج‍
    Final
    ‍ج

    جمل jamal — camel

  • ح
    Ḥā'ḥ (7)
    Isolated
    ح
    Initial
    ح‍
    Medial
    ‍ح‍
    Final
    ‍ح

    حليب ḥalīb — milk

    A strong breathy “h” from the throat.

  • خ
    Khā'kh (ḫ)
    Isolated
    خ
    Initial
    خ‍
    Medial
    ‍خ‍
    Final
    ‍خ

    خبز khubz — bread

    Like Spanish “j” or German “ch” in “Bach”.

  • د
    Dāld
    Isolated
    د
    Initial
    د
    Medial
    ‍د
    Final
    ‍د

    دار dār — house

  • ذ
    Dhāldh (ḏ)
    Isolated
    ذ
    Initial
    ذ
    Medial
    ‍ذ
    Final
    ‍ذ

    ذهب dhahab — gold

    Like English “th” in “this”.

  • ر
    Rā'r
    Isolated
    ر
    Initial
    ر
    Medial
    ‍ر
    Final
    ‍ر

    رمل raml — sand

    Rolled “r”.

  • ز
    Zāyz
    Isolated
    ز
    Initial
    ز
    Medial
    ‍ز
    Final
    ‍ز

    زيت zayt — oil

  • س
    Sīns
    Isolated
    س
    Initial
    س‍
    Medial
    ‍س‍
    Final
    ‍س

    سمك samak — fish

  • ش
    Shīnsh / ch (š)
    Isolated
    ش
    Initial
    ش‍
    Medial
    ‍ش‍
    Final
    ‍ش

    شمس shams — sun

    Like “sh” in “ship”.

  • ص
    Ṣādṣ (S)
    Isolated
    ص
    Initial
    ص‍
    Medial
    ‍ص‍
    Final
    ‍ص

    صقر ṣaqr — falcon

    Emphatic “s”, with the tongue pulled back.

  • ض
    Ḍādḍ (D)
    Isolated
    ض
    Initial
    ض‍
    Medial
    ‍ض‍
    Final
    ‍ض

    ضوء ḍawʾ — light

    Emphatic “d”; Arabic is nicknamed “the language of ḍād”.

  • ط
    Ṭā'ṭ (T)
    Isolated
    ط
    Initial
    ط‍
    Medial
    ‍ط‍
    Final
    ‍ط

    طائر ṭāʾir — bird

    Emphatic “t”.

  • ظ
    Ẓā'ẓ (Z)
    Isolated
    ظ
    Initial
    ظ‍
    Medial
    ‍ظ‍
    Final
    ‍ظ

    ظل ẓill — shadow

    Emphatic “dh”.

  • ع
    ʿAynʿ (3)
    Isolated
    ع
    Initial
    ع‍
    Medial
    ‍ع‍
    Final
    ‍ع

    عين ʿayn — eye, spring

    Constriction deep in the throat; written “3” in Arabizi.

  • غ
    Ghayngh (ġ)
    Isolated
    غ
    Initial
    غ‍
    Medial
    ‍غ‍
    Final
    ‍غ

    غزال ghazāl — gazelle

    Close to a French guttural “r”.

  • ف
    Fā'f
    Isolated
    ف
    Initial
    ف‍
    Medial
    ‍ف‍
    Final
    ‍ف

    فيل fīl — elephant

  • ق
    Qāfq (9)
    Isolated
    ق
    Initial
    ق‍
    Medial
    ‍ق‍
    Final
    ‍ق

    قمر qamar — moon

    A “k” pronounced deep in the throat; “9” in Maghrebi Arabizi.

  • ك
    Kāfk
    Isolated
    ك
    Initial
    ك‍
    Medial
    ‍ك‍
    Final
    ‍ك

    كتاب kitāb — book

  • ل
    Lāml
    Isolated
    ل
    Initial
    ل‍
    Medial
    ‍ل‍
    Final
    ‍ل

    ليمون laymūn — lemon

    With alif, forms the ligature لا.

  • م
    Mīmm
    Isolated
    م
    Initial
    م‍
    Medial
    ‍م‍
    Final
    ‍م

    ماء māʾ — water

  • ن
    Nūnn
    Isolated
    ن
    Initial
    ن‍
    Medial
    ‍ن‍
    Final
    ‍ن

    نجمة najma — star

  • ه
    Hā'h
    Isolated
    ه
    Initial
    ه‍
    Medial
    ‍ه‍
    Final
    ‍ه

    هلال hilāl — crescent

    A light, breathed “h”.

  • و
    Wāww / ū
    Isolated
    و
    Initial
    و
    Medial
    ‍و
    Final
    ‍و

    وردة warda — rose

    Consonant “w” or long vowel “ū”.

  • ي
    Yā'y / ī
    Isolated
    ي
    Initial
    ي‍
    Medial
    ‍ي‍
    Final
    ‍ي

    يد yad — hand

    Consonant “y” or long vowel “ī”.

  • ء
    Hamzaʾ (2)
    Isolated
    ء
    Initial
    ء
    Medial
    ء
    Final
    ء

    سماء samāʾ — sky

    Glottal stop; written alone or on ا, و, ي.

Short vowels and signs

  • بَ Fatḥa (a)
  • بُ Ḍamma (u)
  • بِ Kasra (i)
  • بْ Sukūn (no vowel)
  • بّ Shadda (doubled consonant)
  • بً Tanwīn fatḥa (an)
  • بٌ Tanwīn ḍamma (un)
  • بٍ Tanwīn kasra (in)

How to use

  1. Browse the grid and pick a letter.
  2. Read its Arabic name and Latin transcription, for example ḥ (7) for ح.
  3. Look at its isolated, initial, medial and final forms.
  4. Press “Listen” to hear it, provided an Arabic voice is installed.
  5. Finish with the “Short vowels and signs” section.

28 letters, four forms each

Arabic runs from right to left, and most letters join their neighbours. As a result, one letter can have four forms: isolated, initial, medial and final. Take ب (bā’): ب alone, بـ at the start of a word, ـبـ in the middle and ـب at the end. The grid shows all four for every letter, which makes it easier to spot them in real text.

Six letters are exceptions: ا, د, ذ, ر, ز and و accept a connection on their right side only. The word دار (house) shows this well, since its three letters stay apart. The hamza ء also stands apart when it has no carrier, and it often sits on ا, و or ي (أ, ؤ, ئ).

Each card also gives the Latin transcription, with the Arabizi equivalent in brackets where there is one, plus a translated example such as باب (door), شمس (sun) or وردة (rose).

Pronouncing the tricky letters

Several Arabic sounds do not exist in English. The grid gives a hint for each of them:

  • ح: a strong, breathy “h”, as in حليب (milk);
  • خ: like Spanish “j” or German “ch” in “Bach”, as in خبز (bread);
  • غ: close to a French guttural “r”, as in غزال (gazelle);
  • ق: a “k” made deep in the throat, as in قمر (moon);
  • ص, ض, ط, ظ: the emphatic letters, said with the tongue pulled back;
  • ث and ذ: like the “th” in “think” and in “this”.

The “Listen” button relies on the speech synthesis of your phone or computer. It only works when an Arabic voice is installed there; otherwise, a short message warns you.

Short vowels and signs

The last section covers the marks that complete the letters: fatha (a), damma (u), kasra (i), sukun (no vowel), shadda (doubled consonant) and the three tanwin endings (an, un, in). Newspapers and social media rarely use them, yet they are essential when you learn to read.

To check what you have learned, try the Arabic alphabet quiz. To write your first words, open the Arabic keyboard, which has a panel for these vowel marks.

Frequently asked questions

How many letters are in the Arabic alphabet?
The Arabic alphabet has 28 letters. Three of them, ا, و and ي, also write the long vowels. The hamza ء, a glottal stop, is often listed separately; here it closes the grid.
Why do Arabic letters change shape?
Arabic is a joined script, a bit like cursive handwriting. Each letter therefore takes a different shape when it stands alone or sits at the start, middle or end of a word. The letter ه is a good example: ه, هـ, ـهـ, ـه.
Which Arabic letters do not connect to the next letter?
The letters ا, د, ذ, ر, ز and و only join the letter before them, never the one after. A hamza ء written on its own does not join the next letter either. After any of these, the following letter starts again in its initial or isolated form.
Why does the Listen button make no sound?
Audio comes from your device's speech synthesis, not from recordings. If no Arabic voice is installed, a message tells you so and nothing is played. Add an Arabic voice in your system's language or text-to-speech settings, then reload the page.
How do you pronounce the Arabic letter ع (ʿayn)?
ʿAyn is made by tightening the muscles deep in the throat and has no English equivalent. It is written ʿ in scholarly transliteration and 3 in Arabizi. Practise with عين (eye, spring), which starts with this letter.
What are fatha, damma and kasra used for?
They are the short vowels of Arabic: fatha is “a”, damma is “u” and kasra is “i”. They sit above or below the letters and are usually left out in everyday writing. You mostly see them in the Quran, textbooks and children's books.

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