🔗 Level 2: Joining letters
How letters join: the four shapes New
Most letters have four shapes: alone, at the start, in the middle and at the end of a word.
In this lesson you will
- Recognise each letter in its four shapes
- Know the six letters that never join the letter after them
- Find the 'main part' of a letter that stays the same
Learn
Tap any Arabic example to hear it.
Why letters change shape
Arabic is joined writing, like joined-up handwriting. When a letter joins another, it often loses its 'tail' and keeps only its head (the main part). For example ب alone has a long tail, but at the start of a word it is just بـ.
The dots never change, so the dots are your best clue.
All the letters in their four shapes
Read each row from right to left. A dash (—) means the letter cannot join the next letter, so it has no 'start' or 'middle' shape.
| Letter | Alone | Start | Middle | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ا | — | — | ا | |
| ب | ب | ب | ب | |
| ت | ت | ت | ت | |
| ث | ث | ث | ث | |
| ج | ج | ج | ج | |
| ح | ح | ح | ح | |
| خ | خ | خ | خ | |
| د | — | — | د | |
| ذ | — | — | ذ | |
| ر | — | — | ر | |
| ز | — | — | ز | |
| س | س | س | س | |
| ش | ش | ش | ش | |
| ص | ص | ص | ص | |
| ض | ض | ض | ض | |
| ط | ط | ط | ط | |
| ظ | ظ | ظ | ظ | |
| ع | ع | ع | ع | |
| غ | غ | غ | غ | |
| ف | ف | ف | ف | |
| ق | ق | ق | ق | |
| ك | ك | ك | ك | |
| ل | ل | ل | ل | |
| م | م | م | م | |
| ن | ن | ن | ن | |
| و | — | — | و | |
| ه | ه | ه | ه | |
| ي | ي | ي | ي |
The six letters that never join forwards
ا د ذ ر ز و join the letter before them, but never the letter after them. After one of them, the next letter starts fresh, as if at the beginning of a word: دار ورد.
Practice
Tap each card to hear it. When you can read it by yourself, tap its ✓. Your progress is saved.
Saved on this device. Sign in to keep progress for each child.