Arabic ToolboxArabic Alphabet · الحروف العربية
All 28 Arabic letters in alphabetical order, with their names, sounds and connected forms. Tap a letter to copy it.
Alif ألف
ā / ʾ — Long “a” as in “father”; also a seat for hamza
- Isolated
- ا
- Initial
- ا
- Medial
- ا
- Final
- ا
Bāʾ باء
b — “b” as in “bed”
- Isolated
- ب
- Initial
- ب
- Medial
- ب
- Final
- ب
Tāʾ تاء
t — “t” as in “tea”
- Isolated
- ت
- Initial
- ت
- Medial
- ت
- Final
- ت
Thāʾ ثاء
th — “th” as in “think”
- Isolated
- ث
- Initial
- ث
- Medial
- ث
- Final
- ث
Jīm جيم
j — “j” as in “jam”
- Isolated
- ج
- Initial
- ج
- Medial
- ج
- Final
- ج
Ḥāʾ حاء
ḥ — Breathy “h” made deep in the throat
- Isolated
- ح
- Initial
- ح
- Medial
- ح
- Final
- ح
Khāʾ خاء
kh — “ch” as in Scottish “loch”
- Isolated
- خ
- Initial
- خ
- Medial
- خ
- Final
- خ
Dāl دال
d — “d” as in “dog”
- Isolated
- د
- Initial
- د
- Medial
- د
- Final
- د
Dhāl ذال
dh — “th” as in “this”
- Isolated
- ذ
- Initial
- ذ
- Medial
- ذ
- Final
- ذ
Rāʾ راء
r — Tapped or rolled “r”
- Isolated
- ر
- Initial
- ر
- Medial
- ر
- Final
- ر
Zāy زاي
z — “z” as in “zoo”
- Isolated
- ز
- Initial
- ز
- Medial
- ز
- Final
- ز
Sīn سين
s — “s” as in “sun”
- Isolated
- س
- Initial
- س
- Medial
- س
- Final
- س
Shīn شين
sh — “sh” as in “ship”
- Isolated
- ش
- Initial
- ش
- Medial
- ش
- Final
- ش
Ṣād صاد
ṣ — Heavy (emphatic) “s”
- Isolated
- ص
- Initial
- ص
- Medial
- ص
- Final
- ص
Ḍād ضاد
ḍ — Heavy (emphatic) “d”
- Isolated
- ض
- Initial
- ض
- Medial
- ض
- Final
- ض
Ṭāʾ طاء
ṭ — Heavy (emphatic) “t”
- Isolated
- ط
- Initial
- ط
- Medial
- ط
- Final
- ط
Ẓāʾ ظاء
ẓ — Heavy (emphatic) “th” as in “this”
- Isolated
- ظ
- Initial
- ظ
- Medial
- ظ
- Final
- ظ
ʿAyn عين
ʿ — Voiced sound from the throat; no English equivalent
- Isolated
- ع
- Initial
- ع
- Medial
- ع
- Final
- ع
Ghayn غين
gh — Like a French “r”
- Isolated
- غ
- Initial
- غ
- Medial
- غ
- Final
- غ
Fāʾ فاء
f — “f” as in “fish”
- Isolated
- ف
- Initial
- ف
- Medial
- ف
- Final
- ف
Qāf قاف
q — “k” pronounced further back in the throat
- Isolated
- ق
- Initial
- ق
- Medial
- ق
- Final
- ق
Kāf كاف
k — “k” as in “kite”
- Isolated
- ك
- Initial
- ك
- Medial
- ك
- Final
- ك
Lām لام
l — “l” as in “lamp”
- Isolated
- ل
- Initial
- ل
- Medial
- ل
- Final
- ل
Mīm ميم
m — “m” as in “moon”
- Isolated
- م
- Initial
- م
- Medial
- م
- Final
- م
Nūn نون
n — “n” as in “noon”
- Isolated
- ن
- Initial
- ن
- Medial
- ن
- Final
- ن
Hāʾ هاء
h — “h” as in “hat”
- Isolated
- ه
- Initial
- ه
- Medial
- ه
- Final
- ه
Wāw واو
w / ū — “w” as in “wet”, or long “oo”
- Isolated
- و
- Initial
- و
- Medial
- و
- Final
- و
Yāʾ ياء
y / ī — “y” as in “yes”, or long “ee”
- Isolated
- ي
- Initial
- ي
- Medial
- ي
- Final
- ي
Hamza, tāʾ marbūṭa and other characters
These are not counted among the 28 letters, but you will see them in almost every Arabic text.
Short vowels and diacritics (ḥarakāt)
Shown on the letter بـ so the mark is visible. Tapping copies the mark on its own, ready to place after any letter.
How Arabic letters connect
Each letter can appear in up to four shapes: isolated (on its own), initial (at the start of a word), medial (in the middle) and final (at the end). For example, the letter bāʾ is ب on its own, but بـ at the start of بيت (house).
The six letters ا د ذ ر ز و only connect to the letter before them, never the one after. That is why words like دار appear as separate pieces.
Letters that share a shape
Many Arabic letters have the same base shape and differ only in their dots: ب ت ث, ج ح خ, د ذ, ر ز, س ش, ص ض, ط ظ and ع غ. Learning these groups together is the fastest way to recognise the alphabet.
Typing these letters
To write words rather than single letters, use the online Arabic keyboard. It joins letters automatically and lets you add vowel marks.
Frequently asked questions
How many letters are in the Arabic alphabet?
The Arabic alphabet has 28 letters. Hamza (ء) is sometimes counted as a 29th letter, and characters such as tāʾ marbūṭa (ة) and alif maqṣūra (ى) are variants used at the end of words.
Does Arabic have vowels?
Arabic writes long vowels with the letters alif (ا), wāw (و) and yāʾ (ي). Short vowels are written as small marks above or below letters — fatḥa, ḍamma and kasra — but they are usually left out in everyday writing.
Why does each letter have four forms?
Arabic is a cursive script, so most letters change shape to connect with the letters before and after them. There is still only one character per letter — your phone or computer picks the right shape automatically.
Which letters do not connect?
Six letters never connect to the letter that follows them: ا (Alif), د (Dāl), ذ (Dhāl), ر (Rāʾ), ز (Zāy), و (Wāw). After one of these, the next letter starts a new connected group.
Is the Arabic alphabet written right to left?
Yes. Arabic letters are written and read from right to left. Numbers, however, are read from left to right, even in Arabic text.
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