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5.1: Letters

  • Page ID
    151330

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    Learning Objectives

    In this section, you will be able to:

    • Read, write, and type the letters ط ظ ع غ ف ق in their different shapes.
    • Pronounce the letters ط ظ ع غ ف ق with short and long vowels.

    In this section, you are going to learn how to pronounce these 6 Arabic letters ط ظ ع غ ف ق and their articulation with their short and long vowels, ( Al Harakat)

    In the table below, You are going to learn Letters & Sounds ط ظ ع غ ف ق

    Arabic Letters

    لفظ الحرف

    letter pronunciation

    شكل الحرف

    letter shape

    taa ط
    Dhaa (Dh deep "th") ظ
    Ayn ع
    Ghayn غ
    Faa ف
    Qaaf ق

    Listen and match the letter with its sound & repeat

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    In the table below, we are going to learn about long & short vowels for letters ط ظ ع غ ف ق- Al Harakat

    Letter with short and long vowels

    الحرف الممدود

    letter with long vowels

    الحرف مع الحركات

    Letter with short vowels

    الحرف

    Letter

    طا طي طو طَ طِ طُ طْ ط
    ظا ظي ظو ظَ ظِ ظُ ظْ ظ
    عا عي عو عَ عِ عُ عْ ع
    غا غي غو غَ غِ غُ غْ غ
    فا في فو فَ فِ فُ فْ ف
    قا قي قو قَ قِ قُ قْ ق

    The Letter Tuaaط

    Listen and repeat the letter ط sound below

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Pronunciation of Letter ط:

    To pronounce the letter “ط, put the tip of your tongue up against the bony ridge behind your teeth on the roof of your mouth and drop your tongue low in your mouth. Try to say “t” holding this position. The result will be “ط. The letter “ط” is emitted from the top part of the tip of the tongue and the gum line of the two top incisors. (See Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\))

    the tip of your tongue up against the bony ridge behind your teeth on the roof of your mouth
    Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Pronunciation of Letter ط

    In the table below, we are going to learn about the letter ط with the short vowels and sukun

    Short Vowels
    The Sound of Sukun

    The sound with dihamah

    The sound with kasra

    The sound with Fatah

    ْط طُ طِ طَ

    The letter with the long vowels

    Long vowels

    The letter with the long vowels oo

    The letter with the long vowels ee

    The letter with the long vowel aa

    طو طي طا

    Writing the letter ط at the ( beginning. middle, end) of the word.

    The Letter Taa “ط(See the figure)

    طis a connector letter, and it is written in two separate steps. It is important for the loop to be written in one motion and then connected to the word. To write the independent ط, start on the line and make the loop first. It should be large, oval, and should rest along the line lengthwise. The final step is the downstroke. After forming the loop, lift your pen and draw this stroke as you draw Alif - from the top down. The downstroke should be near the left end of the loop.

    To write “طــ” in the beginning of the word, follow the same steps and then, without stopping to write the downstroke, continue into the connecting segment, but without a tooth. When writing ـــط in the medial position, start from the connecting segment and continue along with the previous steps. In its final position, “ـــط should end when past the oval in a relatively short line.

    Writing Letter ط
    Final Form Medial Form Initial Form Independent Form
    ـط ـطــ طـــ ط

    Watch the video to learn how to write the letter Tuaa

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{2}\)

    Find the letter Tuaa with dihamah

    طُ طا ط طو طُ طِ طُ طي طْ طَ

    Answer
     

    The Letter Dhaa “ظ

    Listen and repeat the letter ظ sound below

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Pronunciation of Letter ظ:

    The letter “ظis an emphatic sound that deepens the quality of the surrounding vowels. The articulation place of the letter ظ” is the top side of the tip of the tongue and the bottom edges of the two top front incisors. You should pay attention that the topside of the tip strikes with the edge of the teeth and not the plates of the teeth. (See the figure \(\PageIndex{2}\))

    the top side of the tip of the tongue and the bottom edges of the two top front incisors
    Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): Pronunciation of Letter ظ

    The letter with the short vowels and sukun

    Short vowels

    The sound of Sukun

    The sound with dhamah

    The sound with kasrah

    The sound with fathah

    ْظ ظُ ظِ ظَ

    The letter with the long vowels

    Long vowel

    The letter with the long vowel oo

    The letter with the long vowel ee

    The letter with the long vowel aa

    ظو ظي ظا

    Writing the letter ظ at the ( beginning. middle, end) of the word.

    The Letter Thaa “ظ

    You write the letter “ظ” the same way you write the letter “ط”, with the addition of a dot on the top

    Writing letter ظ Form

    Final Form

    Medial Form

    Initial Form

    Independent Form

    ــظـ ــظـــ ظـــــ ظ

    Watch the video and learn how to write the letter Dhaa

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{3}\)

    Find the word that has long vowel of the letter Dhaa

    ظافر شارع قريب

    Answer

    ظافر

    The Letter Ayen “ع”

    Listen and repeat the letter ع

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Pronunciation of Letter ع:

    The letter Ayen “ع has not an equivalent sound in English, and it needs practice to pronounce it right. The letter Ayen “ع articulation place is in the middle part of the throat. The middle part of the throat is the part that is half way in between the beginning and the end of the throat. The process to pronounce the letter “ع is that you need to tighten your throat muscles as if you were blocking off the air passage from the inside. You can feel your muscles by putting your hand on your throat. ع is a very important sound in Arabic, and you must learn to say it properly in order to be understood. (See figure \(\PageIndex{3}\))

    tighten your throat muscles as if you were blocking off the air passage from the inside
    Figure \(\PageIndex{3}\): Pronunciation of Letter ع

    The letter with the short vowels and sukun

    Short vowels

    The sound with Sukun

    The sound with Dhamah

    The sound with kasrah

    The sound with fathah

    ْع عُ عِ عَ

    The letter with the long vowels

    Long vowels

    The letter with the long vowel oo

    The letter with the long vowel ee

    The letter with the long vowel aa

    عو عي عا

    Writing the letter ع at the ( beginning. middle, end) of the word.

    The letter ع is a connecting letter and has four different shapes according to its location in the word. Independent “عhas two parts, and they are the head and the body. The head takes the shape of a lowercase “c” on the line, and the second part is the tail, which takes the shape of a large “C”.

    To write the initialعــ, draw the head, which is the shape of the small “c” , then draw the segment to be connected to the following letter.

    When ع” is connected from a previous letter in the medial and final positions, the body of the letter becomes a closed loop "ــعــ/ ـع".

    In some forms of calligraphy, the body of the loop is filled but in others is not ــع.

    The Letter Ayen ع (See the figure)

    Writing letter عform

    Final Form

    Medial Form

    Initial Form

    Independent Form

    ــع ــعـــ عـــــ ع

    Watch the video to learn how to write the letter Aien

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{4}\)

    Find the long vowels of the letter Ayen.

    عَ عا عُ عو عِ عي

    Answer

    عا عو عي

    The Letter Ghain “غ”

    Listen and repeat the letter غ

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Pronunciation of Letter غ

    There is not an exact equivalent sound to the letter غ”, but it is very close to sound of the combination of the two letters “GH.” The articulation place of the letter “غ is the throat. The articulation point is the closest part of the throat, which is the beginning of the throat, or the closest to the mouth. The sound of “غ is similar to the sound you make when you gargle. (See figure \(\PageIndex{4}\))

    The articulation point is the closest part of the throat, which is the beginning of the throat, or the closest to the mouth
    Figure \(\PageIndex{4}\): Pronunciation of Letter غ

    The letter with the short vowels and sukun

    Short vowels

    The sound with Sukun

    The sound with Dhamah

    The sound with kasrah

    The sound with Fathah

    غْ غُ غِ غَ

    The letter with the long vowels

    Long vowels

    The letter with the long vowel oo

    The letter with the long vowel ee

    The letter with the long vowel aa

    غو غي غا

    Writing the letter غ at the ( beginning. middle, end) of the word.

    You write the letter “غ in the same way you write the letter “غ, but you place a dot on the top.

    The Letter Ghain “غ (See the figure)

    letter form

    Final Form

    Medial Form

    Initial Form

    Independent Form

    ـــغ ــغـــ غـــــ غ

    Watch the video to learn how to write the letter Ghein

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{5}\)

    Which of the following is the Arabic letter "غ"

    Ayen Ghain Faa Qaaf Thaa

    Answer

    Ghain

    The Letter Faa ف

    Listen and repeat the letter ف

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Pronunciation of Letter ف:

    This letter is pronounced like “f” in the word “feather”. The articulation place of the letter “ف is the lips, between the inside of the lower lip and the tips/ edges of the two top front incisors. Usually, aspiration occurs while the pronunciation of the letter “ف”. (See figure \(\PageIndex{5}\))

    between the inside of the lower lip and the tips/ edges of the two top front incisors.
    Figure \(\PageIndex{5}\): Pronunciation of Letter ف

    The letter with the short vowels and sukun

    Short vowels

    The sound with Sukun

    The sound with dhamah

    The sound with kasrah

    The sound with fathah

    فْ فُ فِ فَ

    The letter with the long vowels

    Long vowels

    The letter with the long vowel oo

    The letter with the long vowel ee

    The letter with the long vowel aa

    فو في فا

    Writing letterف in its three forms( Initial, Medial, and final).

    The letter “ف is a connector letter and can be connected from the two sides. It’s independent and final forms have a tail that is unusual in that it remains on the line rather that dipping below.

    To write the independent “ف, begin above the line and draw a flat loop to your left and down around. Keep the loop of the ف small and just above the line, resting on a short neck. Continue along the line into a hook to finish the tail.

    To write the initial “فــ, begin the same way then finish with a connecting segment to attach to the next letter.

    The medialــفــ” starts from the connecting segment and loops up to the left and back around to the line, then into the connecting segment.

    In the medial position, the loop is small and oval-shaped.

    The final “ــفcombines the shape of the medial position with the tail of the independent “ف

    Writing Letter ف
    Final Form Medial Form Initial Form Independent Form
    ــف ـــفـــ فـــ ف

    Watch the video to learn how to write the letters Faa

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{6}\)

    Find the short vowels of the letter Faa in the following:

    فَ فا فُ فو فِ في فْ

    Answer

    فَ فُ فِ فْ

    The Letter Qaaf “ق

    Listen and repeat the letter ق

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Pronunciation of Letter ق:

    The articulation place of the letter “ق” is the tongue. The letter قis articulated from the deepest part of the tongue and what lies opposite to it from the roof of the mouth in the area of the soft palate. The letter “ق” is emphatic counterpart to the sound of “k”. Like the other emphatic sounds, it is pronounced with the tongue low in the mouth, and it impacts the quality of the surrounding vowels so that the fatha sounds like “u” in “but”. The letter “Qaaf” “ق” is pronounced at the very back of the tongue. Open your mouth and say aah, as if you were at a doctor’s appointment. Your tongue should be flat in your mouth. Without raising your tongue pull it back so that the base of it closes off air by pulling back against the throat. The only thing that should move in your mouth is your tongue, and only at the very back, as if you were sliding it back like a sliding door. At this point you should be able to breathe through your mouth, although it is wide open. Listen to yourself pronouncing the letter “ق. (See figure \(\PageIndex{6}\))

    articulated from the deepest part of the tongue and what lies opposite to it from the roof of the mouth in the area of the soft palate
    Figure \(\PageIndex{6}\): Pronunciation of Letter ق

    Common Mistakes in pronouncing the letter “ق

    • Either the letter is articulated on the hard palate or close to it, so it ends up sounding like an English “k”.

    Or the letter is pronounced not from the tongue, but from the throat, and the resultant incorrect sound is a cross between the letter “غ” and ق

    The letter with short vowels and sukun

    Short vowels

    The sound with sukun

    The sound with dhamah

    The sound with kasrah

    The sound with fathah

    ْق قُ قِ قَ

    The letter with the long vowels

    Long vowel

    The letter with the long vowel oo

    The letter with the long vowel ee

    The letter with the long vowel aa

    قو قي قا

    Writing the letter ق in its three forms ( Initial, Medial, and final).

    The letter “ق is a connector letter, and its shape is similar to the letter “ق in its connected positions. However, ق is written with two dots above it. In the independent and final positions, the ق has a deep semicircle tail that drops well below the line.

    To write the independent “ق, make the same loop you made for “ق, then drop below the line to draw the tail and bring the tail back up to the line.

    The final “ــق” has a tail that drops well below the line.

    Writing Letter ق
    Final Form Medial Form Initial Form Independent Form
    ــق ــقــ قــــ ق

    Watch the video to learn how to write the letter Qaaf

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{7}\)

    True or False

    The word " قَرِيب" has a short vowel _َ of the letter Qaaf

    Answer
    True

    Review the letters in their long & short vowels form in the charts below

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{8}\)

    Write the letters in their correct form in the chart

    طا ظو عا ع ق فو ط قي ظ غ ف غا طي ظا طَ ظِ عُ عو طو ظي عي فا غو

    Letters with Long Vowels

    The letters with the long vowel oo

    The letters with the long vowel ee

    The letters with the long vowel aa

    Answer

    عو غو فو قو طو ظو

    Answer

    عي غي في قي طي ظي

    Answer

    عا غا فا قا طا ظا

     
    Exercise \(\PageIndex{9}\)

    Write the letters in their short vowels in the chart

    عَ قَِ فْ طِ عْ ظُ غَ فَ غْ قْ ظْ طَ ظِ عُ ظَ عِ طُ فُ غُ قُ غِ قِ ط

    Letters with short vowels

    The letters with Dhamah

    The letters wityh kasrah

    The letters with fathah

    The letters with sukun

    Answer

    طُ ظُ عُ غُ فُ قُ

    Answer

    طِ ظِ عِ غِ فِ قِ

    Answer

    طَ ظَ عَ غَ فَ قَ

    Answer

    طْ ظْ عْ غْ فْ قْ

    Watch this video about the letters ط ظ ع غ ف ق

    Query \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Choose the correct form of the letter ط

    Query \(\PageIndex{10}\)

    TChoose the correct form of the letter ظ

    Query \(\PageIndex{11}\)

    Choose the correct form of the letter ع

    Query \(\PageIndex{12}\)

    Choose the correct form of the letter غ

    Query \(\PageIndex{13}\)

    Choose the correct form of the letter ف

    Query \(\PageIndex{14}\)

    Choose the correct form of the letter ق

    Query \(\PageIndex{15}\)

    Find the letter Tuaa

    Query \(\PageIndex{16}\)

    Find the long vowel of letter FAA

    Query \(\PageIndex{17}\)

    Find the letters that come in the medial form

    Query \(\PageIndex{18}\)
    Query \(\PageIndex{19}\)
    Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Connect the letters, and write each word:

    ش + ا + ر+ ع

    ط + ب + ي + ب

    هـ + ا + ت + ف

    أ + ز + ر + ق

    ق + ر + ي + ب

    ر + ق + م

    Answer

    شارع، طبيب، هاتف، أزرق، قريب، رقم

    Query \(\PageIndex{20}\)

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