The Arabic alphabet for kids
The Arabic alphabet has 28 letters, written from right to left. It starts with alif (ا), baa (ب) and taa (ت) and ends with yaa (ي). Most letters join up and change shape in a word. Tap any letter below to hear it and see all its shapes.
All 28 letters
Arabic alphabet chart with sounds
| # | Letter | Name | Sound | Example word | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ا | alif أَلِف | Holds a vowel: a, i or u | أَسَد (asad, lion) | |
| 2 | ب | baa بَاء | b as in ball | بَطَّة (baṭṭa, duck) | |
| 3 | ت | taa تَاء | t as in tap | تُفَّاحَة (tuffaaḥa, apple) | |
| 4 | ث | thaa ثَاء | th as in think | ثَعْلَب (thaʿlab, fox) | |
| 5 | ج | jeem جِيم | j as in jam | جَمَل (jamal, camel) | |
| 6 | ح | Haa حَاء | a breathy h, like fogging a mirror | حِصَان (ḥiṣaan, horse) | |
| 7 | خ | khaa خَاء | kh as in Scottish loch | خُبْز (khubz, bread) | |
| 8 | د | daal دَال | d as in dog | دُبّ (dubb, bear) | |
| 9 | ذ | dhaal ذَال | th as in this | ذُرَة (dhura, corn) | |
| 10 | ر | raa رَاء | a rolled r | رِيشَة (reesha, feather) | |
| 11 | ز | zaay زَاي | z as in zoo | زَرَافَة (zaraafa, giraffe) | |
| 12 | س | seen سِين | s as in sun | سَمَكَة (samaka, fish) | |
| 13 | ش | sheen شِين | sh as in ship | شَمْس (shams, sun) | |
| 14 | ص | Saad صَاد | a heavy, deep s | صَقْر (ṣaqr, falcon) | |
| 15 | ض | Daad ضَاد | a heavy, deep d | ضِفْدَع (ḍifdaʿ, frog) | |
| 16 | ط | Taa طَاء | a heavy, deep t | طَائِرَة (ṭaaʾira, aeroplane) | |
| 17 | ظ | Dhaa ظَاء | a heavy th as in this | ظَرْف (ḍharf, envelope) | |
| 18 | ع | ayn عَيْن | a squeeze from deep in the throat | عَيْن (ʿayn, eye) | |
| 19 | غ | ghayn غَيْن | like a gargle, or a French r | غَيْمَة (ghayma, cloud) | |
| 20 | ف | faa فَاء | f as in fish | فِيل (feel, elephant) | |
| 21 | ق | qaaf قَاف | a k from the back of the throat | قِطّ (qiṭṭ, cat) | |
| 22 | ك | kaaf كَاف | k as in kite | كَلْب (kalb, dog) | |
| 23 | ل | laam لَام | l as in lion | لَيْمُون (laymoon, lemon) | |
| 24 | م | meem مِيم | m as in moon | مَوْز (mawz, banana) | |
| 25 | ن | noon نُون | n as in nose | نَمِر (namir, tiger) | |
| 26 | ه | haa هَاء | h as in hat | هِلَال (hilaal, crescent moon) | |
| 27 | و | waaw وَاو | w as in water | وَرْدَة (warda, rose) | |
| 28 | ي | yaa يَاء | y as in yes | يَد (yad, hand) |
How to learn the Arabic alphabet
- A few letters at a time. Learn three or four letters in order, then move on. Hudhud's Letter Land does it in seven small steps.
- Hear it before you read it. Listen to each letter's name and sound, then say it back.
- Watch the dots. Many letters share a shape and differ only in their dots, like ب ت ث. Spotting the dots is half the battle.
- Add the vowel marks. Once the letters are familiar, the harakat turn them into sounds like ba, bi and bu.
- Little and often. Ten minutes a day beats an hour once a week.
Questions about the Arabic alphabet
How many letters are in the Arabic alphabet?
The Arabic alphabet has 28 letters. All of them are consonants; short vowels are shown with small marks (harakat) above or below the letters, and the letters alif, waaw and yaa also make long vowels.
What order do the Arabic letters go in?
The usual order is: ا alif, ب baa, ت taa, ث thaa, ج jeem, ح Haa, خ khaa, د daal, ذ dhaal, ر raa, ز zaay, س seen, ش sheen, ص Saad, ض Daad, ط Taa, ظ Dhaa, ع ayn, غ ghayn, ف faa, ق qaaf, ك kaaf, ل laam, م meem, ن noon, ه haa, و waaw, ي yaa. Letters that look alike, such as baa, taa and thaa, sit next to each other.
Which way is Arabic written?
Arabic is written and read from right to left. Most letters join to the next letter in a word, so each letter can have up to four shapes: on its own, at the start, in the middle and at the end of a word.
Which Arabic letters do not join?
Six letters never join to the letter after them: alif (ا), daal (د), dhaal (ذ), raa (ر), zaay (ز), waaw (و). They still join to the letter before them.
What is the hardest Arabic letter to say?
Many beginners find ʿayn (ع) and Haa (ح) the trickiest, because English has no sound like them. ʿAyn is a squeeze from deep in the throat, and Haa is a breathy h, like fogging up a mirror. Listening and copying a recording is the best way to learn them.
How long does it take a child to learn the Arabic alphabet?
With around ten minutes of practice a day, many children recognise all 28 letters within a few weeks. Learning a few letters at a time, in alphabet order, and hearing each sound out loud helps them stick.
Learn all 28 letters by playing
Hudhud turns all of this into ten fun minutes a day, with spoken Arabic, games and rewards. Free, with no sign-up needed to try.
