Letters I
ا ب ت ث ج ح خ
Your first seven letters and the dot patterns that tell them apart.
You will learn
- Recognise ا ب ت ث ج ح خ
- Know each letter's name and sound
- Tell letters apart by their dots
Arabic reads right to left
Arabic has 28 letters, all consonants. It's written from right to left. Many letters share one basic shape and are told apart only by dots.
One shape, three letters
ب ت ث share one shape. One dot below makes b, two dots above make t, and three dots above make th (as in 'think').
- بَاب — bāb — door
- تُوت — tūt — berries
ج ح خ
ج (dot inside) sounds like j in 'jam'. ح (no dot) is a breathy h from deep in the throat, like breathing on glasses. خ (dot above) is a rasping kh, like Scottish 'loch'.
- حُبّ — ḥubb — love
- خُبْز — khubz — bread
Vocabulary
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| ا | alif | long 'aa', or a seat for other sounds |
| ب | bāʾ | b as in 'bed' |
| ت | tāʾ | t as in 'tea' |
| ث | thāʾ | th as in 'think' |
| ج | jīm | j as in 'jam' |
| ح | ḥāʾ | breathy throat h |
| خ | khāʾ | kh as in 'loch' |
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