The Arabic alphabet

Arabic has 28 letters, written from right to left. They are all consonants: long vowels are written with ا, و and ي, and short vowels are small marks above or below the letter. Most letters join the next one and change shape a little as they do, but the core shape stays the same, so you learn 28 shapes, not 112. Below is every letter with its forms, its sound and a word to read. Press the speaker to hear it.

All 28 letters

Read each row of forms like a word: the first letter of a word takes the initial shape, then medial, then final. The little line (ـ) shows where the letter joins its neighbour.

Letter	Forms	Sounds like	Example
اأَلِفalifmoon letter	اalone اstart ـاmiddle ـاend Never joins the next letter	a long a, as in “father”. At the start of a word it carries a hamza and is read a, i or uā · [aː]	بَابbāb: door
ببَاءbāʾmoon letter	بalone بـstart ـبـmiddle ـبend	b in “bed”. Arabic has no p, so “Pepsi” is written with بb · [b]	بَلَدbalad: country
تتَاءtāʾsun letter	تalone تـstart ـتـmiddle ـتend	t in “ten”t · [t]	تُفَّاحtuffāḥ: apples
ثثَاءthāʾsun letter	ثalone ثـstart ـثـmiddle ـثend	th in “think”th · [θ]	ثُومthūm: garlic
ججِيمjīmmoon letter	جalone جـstart ـجـmiddle ـجend	j in “jam”j · [d͡ʒ]	جُبْنjubn: cheese
ححَاءḥāʾmoon letter	حalone حـstart ـحـmiddle ـحend	a strong, breathy h from deep in the throat, like breathing on glasses to clean them. Not the same as هḥ · [ħ]	حَلِيبḥalīb: milk
خخَاءkhāʾmoon letter	خalone خـstart ـخـmiddle ـخend	ch in Scottish “loch”, a rough, scraping soundkh · [x]	خُبْزkhubz: bread
ددَالdālsun letter	دalone دstart ـدmiddle ـدend Never joins the next letter	d in “dog”d · [d]	دُبّdubb: bear
ذذَالdhālsun letter	ذalone ذstart ـذmiddle ـذend Never joins the next letter	th in “this”dh · [ð]	ذَكِيّdhakiyy: clever
ررَاءrāʾsun letter	رalone رstart ـرmiddle ـرend Never joins the next letter	a tapped or rolled r, as in Spanish “pero”r · [r]	رَجُلrajul: man
ززَايzāysun letter	زalone زstart ـزmiddle ـزend Never joins the next letter	z in “zoo”z · [z]	زَيْتُونzaytūn: olives
سسِينsīnsun letter	سalone سـstart ـسـmiddle ـسend	s in “sun”s · [s]	سَمَكsamak: fish
ششِينshīnsun letter	شalone شـstart ـشـmiddle ـشend	sh in “shop”sh · [ʃ]	شَمْسshams: sun
صصَادṣādsun letter	صalone صـstart ـصـmiddle ـصend	a heavy s: say s with the back of your tongue raised. The a after it sounds deeper, closer to “sun” than “sad”ṣ · [sˤ]	صَدِيقṣadīq: friend
ضضَادḍādsun letter	ضalone ضـstart ـضـmiddle ـضend	a heavy d, made like ص. Arabs call their language “the language of ḍād” because this sound is so rareḍ · [dˤ]	ضَيْفḍayf: guest
ططَاءṭāʾsun letter	طalone طـstart ـطـmiddle ـطend	a heavy t, without the puff of air an English t hasṭ · [tˤ]	طَبِيبṭabīb: doctor
ظظَاءẓāʾsun letter	ظalone ظـstart ـظـmiddle ـظend	a heavy th of “this”. Many speakers say it as a heavy zẓ · [ðˤ]	ظَرْفẓarf: envelope
ععَيْنʿaynmoon letter	عalone عـstart ـعـmiddle ـعend	no English match: squeeze your throat as if you were about to gag and keep your voice going, like a strained “ah”. Often you hear it mostly in the vowel next to itʿ · [ʕ]	عَيْنʿayn: eye
غغَيْنghaynmoon letter	غalone غـstart ـغـmiddle ـغend	a gargled g, like the French r in “Paris”gh · [ɣ]	غُرْفَةghurfa: room
ففَاءfāʾmoon letter	فalone فـstart ـفـmiddle ـفend	f in “far”f · [f]	فِيلfīl: elephant
ققَافqāfmoon letter	قalone قـstart ـقـmiddle ـقend	a k made much further back, where the throat starts. Your voice sounds a bit hollowq · [q]	قَلْبqalb: heart
ككَافkāfmoon letter	كalone كـstart ـكـmiddle ـكend	k in “kite”k · [k]	كِتَابkitāb: book
للَامlāmsun letter	لalone لـstart ـلـmiddle ـلend	l in “let”. In الله (Allah) it is a dark l, like in “full”l · [l]	لَحْمlaḥm: meat
ممِيمmīmmoon letter	مalone مـstart ـمـmiddle ـمend	m in “map”m · [m]	مَاءmāʾ: water
ننُونnūnsun letter	نalone نـstart ـنـmiddle ـنend	n in “no”n · [n]	نَهْرnahr: river
ههَاءhāʾmoon letter	هalone هـstart ـهـmiddle ـهend	h in “hat”, and you say it at the end of words tooh · [h]	هَاتِفhātif: phone
ووَاوwāwmoon letter	وalone وstart ـوmiddle ـوend Never joins the next letter	w in “water”, or a long u as in “moon”w, ū · [w, uː]	وَلَدwalad: boy
ييَاءyāʾmoon letter	يalone يـstart ـيـmiddle ـيend	y in “yes”, or a long ee as in “see”y, ī · [j, iː]	يَدyad: hand

Vowel marks and special letters

Short vowels are not letters but small marks (harakat). Learner books, children's books and the Quran write them; newspapers, signs and text messages usually leave them out, so readers fill them in from the word they know.

Mark	What it does	Example
بَbaفَتْحَةfatḥa	A short line above the letter: a short a.	قَمَرqamar: moon
بِbiكَسْرَةkasra	The same line below the letter: a short i.	جِسْرjisr: bridge
بُbuضَمَّةḍamma	A small و above the letter: a short u.	حُلْوḥulw: sweet
بْbسُكُونsukūn	A small circle: no vowel after this letter, so it closes the syllable.	كَلْبkalb: dog
بّbbشَدَّةshadda	A small w shape: the letter is doubled, said twice as long. Its vowel mark sits on top of it.	سُكَّرsukkar: sugar
بًا بٍ بٌban, bin, bunتَنْوِينtanwīn	A doubled vowel mark at the end of a word adds an n: -an, -in, -un. The -an form is usually written on an extra ا.	شُكْرًاshukran: thank you
ء أ إ ؤ ئʾهَمْزَةhamza	A stop in the throat, like the break in “uh-oh”. It sits on ا, و or ي, or on its own.	رَأْسraʾs: head
ة ـةa, atتَاء مَرْبُوطَةtāʾ marbūṭa	ه with the two dots of ت, only at the end of words. It is mostly a feminine ending, read -a, and becomes -at when another word follows closely.	مَدْرَسَةmadrasa: school
ى ـىāأَلِف مَقْصُورَةalif maqṣūra	ي without dots, only at the end of words. It reads as a long ā, just like ا.	مَقْهَىmaqhā: café

Sun letters and moon letters

“The” in Arabic is الـ (al-), joined to the word. Before 14 letters, the sun letters, the l disappears and the next letter is doubled: الشَّمْس is ash-shams, “the sun”. Before the other 14, the moon letters, you say the l: الْقَمَر is al-qamar, “the moon”. The two words gave the groups their names. Sun letters are the ones made with the tip of the tongue, like t, d, s, n and l itself.

Sun letters

الشَّمْسash-shams: the sun

Moon letters

الْقَمَرal-qamar: the moon

Learn it in four steps

1. One shape, different dots

ب, ت, ث, ن and ي are the same small tooth at the start or in the middle of a word. Only the dots tell them apart: one below for b, two above for t, three above for th, one above for n, two below for y. Learn this family first and you can read بَيْت (house) and بِنْت (girl).

2. The six that don't join forward

ا, د, ذ, ر, ز and و join the letter before them but never the one after, so a word has a small gap after them. That gap is not a space between words. ذ is د with a dot and ز is ر with a dot.

3. New shapes, familiar sounds

ج, س, ش, ف, ك, ل, م and ه are sounds English already has, so you only learn the shape. ه changes the most: هـ at the start, ـهـ in the middle, ـه at the end.

4. Throat sounds and heavy letters

ح, خ, ع, غ and ق come from the throat, and ص, ض, ط and ظ are the heavy versions of s, d, t and th. They come in pairs that differ by a dot: ح and خ, ع and غ, ص and ض, ط and ظ. Leave them for last and listen to them often.

Four things that make reading easier

Start with text that has all its vowel marks, and drop them as you learn words. Once you know كتاب is kitāb (book), you won't need the marks to read it.
ل followed by ا is always written as one shape: لا. It is the word “no”, and you will see it everywhere.
Words are written in one stroke without lifting the pen, and the dots come at the end. That is why the letters look so linked: you are reading a line, not separate boxes.
Numbers go left to right, even inside Arabic text: in ١٢ (12) the 1 is on the left. Many Arab countries also use 0 to 9 as you know them.

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Questions about the Arabic alphabet

How many letters are in the Arabic alphabet?

28, all consonants. Three of them (ا, و, ي) also write the long vowels ā, ū and ī. Some lists count hamza (ء) as a 29th letter, and ة and ى are variants of ت and ي, not separate letters.

Does Arabic have vowels?

Yes, but the short ones (a, i, u) are small marks above or below the letters and are usually left out in everyday writing. The long vowels are written with ا, و and ي.

How long does it take to learn the Arabic alphabet?

Most learners can read the letters with vowel marks in one or two weeks of short daily practice. The four forms take less time than they seem, because most of them are the same shape with or without its tail.

Which Arabic letters don't connect?

Six: ا, د, ذ, ر, ز and و. They join the letter before them but never the one after, so they only have two forms instead of four.