Skip to main content
Back to Lessons

Lesson 6: Silent Letters & Special Characters

Silent Letters in Arabic

Alif Wasla (ا الوصل)

An alif that is not pronounced when the word follows another word. It is written without a hamza on top. Common in words like:

  • ٱلسَّمِيع (as-Samīʿ) — the alif is silent
  • ٱقْرَأْ (iqraʾ) — the alif is silent

Hamza (ء)

A letter that represents a glottal stop. It can sit on top of an alif (أ), below it (إ), on a waw (ؤ), or on a ya (ئ).

Special Quranic Marks

  • م (mīm) — compulsory stop. You must stop here.
  • لا (lā) — do not stop here.
  • ج (jīm) — you may stop or continue.
  • صلى (ṣallā) — stop is better but not compulsory.

Lesson Quiz

Answer all questions. You need 75% to pass and unlock the next lesson.

1.What is Alif Wasla?

2.What does the م (mīm) stop mark mean in the Quran?

3.Which letter represents a glottal stop?

4.What does the لا (lā) mark mean?