Exam Prep Flashcards
How many letters are there in Arabic?
28 letters
What are the names of heavy and light letters? And which ones are heavy?
- Heavy = Tafkheem (7): Pronounced with a full mouth
خ ص ض ط ظ غ ق
- Light = Tareeq (21)
Exceptions: ل and ر
• ر is heavy when it has a fatha or dhamma, light with a kasra
• ل is heavy only in the name of Allah (SWT), but light when saying Bismillah (where the
name of Allah is preceded by a kasra)
Explain and list the naughty letters?
- Naughty letters join from the right but not the left
- There are 6 naughty letters
ا د ذرزؤ
What does Makhaarij mean?
Where the letters come from
What are the 5 organs of speech?
- Al Jawf (The empty space between the mouth and the throat)
- Al-Halq (The throat)
- Al-lisaan (The tongue)
- Ashafataan (The two lips)
- Al khayshoom (The nasal passage)
Explain Al Jawf
- Meaning: The empty space between the mouth and the throat (Aa, ee, uu)
- The letters of Al Jawf are the - 3 long voels which are:
- Alif Saakinah before it a fatha
- Waw saakinah before it a damma
- Yaa saakinah before it a kasra
Explain Al Halq
- Meaning: The throat
- There are six letters and 3 are articulation points
- Top: غ خ
- Middle: ع ح
- Bottom/Deep: ء ه
Explain Al Lisaan
Meaning (the tongue)
- 18 letters, 4 areas/sections, 10 articulation points
- back of the tongue (2 articulation points and 2 letters):
ك , ق - middle of the tongue (1 articulation point and 3 letters):
ي ش ج - side of the tongue (2 letters, 2 articulation points):
ض , ل - tip of the tongue (11 letters, 5 articulation points)
ن , ر , ت د ط , س ص ز , ث ذ ظ
Back of tongue
- back of the tongue (2 articulation points and 2 letters):
ك , ق
Middle of tongue
- middle of the tongue (1 articulation point and 3 letters):
ي ش ج
Side of tongue
- side of the tongue (2 letters, 2 articulation points):
ض , ل
Tip of tongue
- tip of the tongue (11 letters, 5 articulation points)
ن , ر , ت د ط , س ص ز , ث ذ ظ
Explain Ashafatan
Meaning (The lips)
4 letters, 2 articulation points
- Upper teeth touching lower lip: ف
- use both lips: ب م و
Explain Al khayshoom
- Meaning: Nasal passage
- 2 letters: مّ نّ
- Both have characteristics of ghunna waajiba
- say letters with a blocked nose, and hold onto it for two counts.
Qalqalah letters
• 5 letters
• We must bounce or vibrate when they have a sukoon [ ] on them.
قْ طْ بْ جْ دْ
Qa-Tt-Bu-Ja-D
Explain Leen Letters
• 2 letters: يْ وْ
• Not long letters but can be stretched like long vowels when followed by a stopping
sukoon.
• Become OWW and AYY
- Fatha before them
- only stretch at the end
Explain Hamzatal Wasl
- Shaped like Alif with the head of Saad [ ٱ ], Comes from Al Halq
- Has an ‘aah’ sound like a hamzah
- Say it at the beginning, drop it in the middle of a word.
- Never carries a vowel! Can sometimes see vowel by looking @ 3rd letter
- When paired with a Laam, becomes Al [ ٱل ]
Hamzatal Qat
- Your normal hamzah, ‘aah’ sound
- Never silent!
- Can use Alif, Waaw, and Yaa as a chair [ أ إ ؤ ئ ]
- The vowel is always written
Alif
- Not a letter, it’s a long vowel. See: Al Jawf and Stretching.
- Always Saakinah. Must be preceded by a fatha
- Silent with Fathataan
List Harakah
- short vowels: Hold for 1 count
1. Fatha
2. Kasra
3. Dhamma
4. Sukoon [ ]
5. Shaddah
Explain Kasra
- Kasra ( ـِ )
• ee sound – lowering the jaw
Explain dhamma
[ اُ ]
• oo sound – circle the lips
Explain Fatha
- Fatha ( ـَ )
• ah sound opening the mouth
Explain Sukoon
[اْ]
• silent vowel
• If haraka is a movement, sukoon doesn’t want movement. Just say the sound.
• Always preceded by a harakah (fatha, kasra, dhamma). Join with the letter before it.
Explain Shaddah
[اّ]
Double prominence.
• Say first with a sukoon (join to letter before) and then with harakah
Explain Long vowels
• stretch 2 counts (See also: Al Jawf)
- Alif Saakinah before it a Fatha [ اْ ]
• Or Alif Maqsoora [ ى ] (shaped like a yaa with no dots and no harakah). - Yaa Saakinah before it a Kasra [ يْ ]
- Waaw Saahinah before it a dhamma [ وْ ]
• Or waaw with no harakah
Further elongation
- Wiggly line [ آ ] means stretch more than 2 counts (4-5 or 6).
- Stretch 4-5 counts when there is a hamzah after a long vowel.
Stretch 6 counts when
there is a shaddah after a long vowel.
Rules of Joining
- If they have a tail (below the line), cut it off.
- When joining, shorten letters.
- Last letter keeps its full shape
- Naughty letters only join from one side.
Explain the precedence of shaddah
- Cannot read two saakin (sukoon) next to one another or a sukoon followed by a shaddah (because it follows the rules of sukoon). We must always drop the first sukoon, and keep the last shaddah or sukoon.
- Important: when applying rule to shaddahs, this only applies when the sukoon is before the shaddah not after, because a shaddah ends in a harakah.
- Long vowels carry a sukoon (which isn’t written).
- Applies to tanween (double vowels) when they are away from each other (ignore). When they are next to each other, say it.
- With Othmani script, when the letter is silent it will have no harakah.
Rules of stopping
Rules of Stopping
• Hold breath until stopping (end of Ayah). If not, look for little stopping signs. If there are
no stopping signs, must read until Ayah has full meaning.
• Put a stopping sukoon at the end of each Ayah.
o If not stopping, use the end harakah to combine two Ayah in one breath.
• When stopping on fathataan, make it a long vowel Alif
o Exception: Taa Marboota [ ة ] becomes a haa saakinah [ هْ ] even with fathataan
• When stopping on a regular long vowel, keep the stretch (2 counts).
o Exception: with the small detatched و and ى long vowels, only stretch if continuing.
• When stopping on a long vowel with Madd sign [ آ ], if it is not connected to the
hamzah/shaddah after it, only stretch 2 counts.
Special Rules of Surahs on Exam
- Surah An-Nas has Al Khayshoom (the nasal passage)
* Surah Al-Falaq (Ayah 2 + 3) and Al Ikhlaas (every Ayah) have Qalqalah letters
