The Rules of Heavy and Light Letters in Arabic
In the science of Tajweed—the art of precise Quranic recitation—Tafkhīm (thickening) and Tarqīq (lightening) are essential pronunciation rules that govern how Arabic letters are articulated. These principles distinguish between the heavy and light letters in Arabic, helping preserve the exact meaning of the Qur’an.
Mispronouncing these heavy and light letters can lead to errors in meaning and break the natural flow of recitation. Therefore, a solid understanding of Tajweed rules related to these sounds is crucial for anyone seeking to recite the Qur’an correctly, as it was revealed.
What Will You Learn on This Page?
This detailed guide will walk you through:
- The full list of Tafkhīm letters and their five levels of heaviness
- The complete set of light (Tarqīq) letters and why they remain soft
- Special cases like Alif, Lām, and Rāʾ, which can shift between heavy and light
- Real Qur’anic examples to illustrate every rule clearly
By the end of this guide, you’ll gain a confident and accurate understanding of how to pronounce heavy and light letters, ensuring your recitation is both beautiful and correct.
Tafkhīm - heaviness (Fattening/Thickening):
It is the raising of the back of the tongue when pronouncing an elevated (heavy) letter.
How do you make an Arabic letter heavy?
By raising the back of the tongue toward the roof of the mouth (the soft palate), the sound becomes heavy. This elevation directs the pressure upward producing a full-bodied sound.
Tarqīq (Thinning/Lightening):
It is the lowering of the back of the tongue to the bottom of the mouth when pronouncing a light letter.
How do you make an Arabic letter light?
By lowering the back of the tongue toward the floor of the mouth when pronouncing the letter. This reduces the strength of the sound and produces a thin and light (muraqqaq) sound.
heavy letters in tajweed - Letters of Tafkhīm
These are the letters: “خُصَّ ضَغْطٍ قِظْ” (خ, ص, ض, غ, ط, ق, ظ). They are also called ” al-Istilāʾ Letters” and are always heavy in all positions.
Order of Strength in Tafkhīm:
- ط (strongest)
- ض
- ص
- ظ
- ق
- غ
- خ (weakest)
Levels of Tafkhīm (Five Ranks):
- Highest: A letter with a fatḥah followed by an Alif (e.g., “طَائِعِينَ”).
- Second: A letter with a fatḥah but no Alif after (e.g., “صَدَقَ”).
- Third: A letter with a ḍammah (e.g., “فَضُرِبَ”).
- Fourth: A letter with a sukūn (e.g., “فَاقْضِ”).
- Lowest: A letter with a kasrah (e.g., “خِيَانَةَ”).
Light letters in tajweed - Letters of Tarqīq (Thinning)
All other Arabic letters are naturally light (مرققة), except for ا (Alif), ل (Lām), and ر (Rāʾ), which can be pronounced as either heavy (مفخمة) or light (مرققة) depending on their context.
Letters That Can Be Both heavy and light
These are: Alif, Lām, and Rāʾ.
Cases for Alif:
Alif does not have its own Tafkhīm /Tarqīq but follows the letter before it:
- If preceded by a heavy (Mufakhkham ) letter → Tafkhīm (e.g., “قَالَ”).
- If preceded by a light (Muraqqaq ) letter → Tarqīq (e.g., “كَانَ”).
Cases of Lam :
Tafkhīm in Lam - heavy lam:
Only in “Allah” (الله) when preceded by:
- Fatḥah (e.g., “تَاللهِ” ).
- Ḍammah (e.g., “يَعْلَمُ اللهُ”).
- At the beginning of speech (with Hamzah).
Tarqīq (Thinning) in Lām :
- In “Allah” when preceded by Kasrah (e.g., “بِسْمِ اللهِ” ).
- In all other words (e.g., “المِيل”, “يَلْفِظ”, “هَلْ أَتَى”).
rules of Raa in tajweed :
When to pronounce the letter 'Raa' heavily.
- if It carries Fatḥah (رَ)
شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِي أُنزِلَ فِيهِ الْقُرْآنُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَاتٍ مِّنَ الْهُدَىٰ وَالْفُرْقَانِ
- if It carries Ḍammah (رُ).
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا سَوَاءٌ عَلَيْهِمْ أَأَنذَرْتَهُمْ أَمْ لَمْ تُنذِرْهُمْ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ
- It is sākin (رْ) and the preceding letter has Fatḥah
وَإِذْ قَالَتِ الْمَلَائِكَةُ يَا مَرْيَمُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ اصْطَفَاكِ وَطَهَّرَكِ وَاصْطَفَاكِ عَلَىٰ نِسَاءِ الْعَالَمِينَ
- It is sākin (رْ) and the preceding letter has Ḍammah
أَفَلَا يَتَدَبَّرُونَ الْقُرْآنَ ۚ وَلَوْ كَانَ مِنْ عِندِ غَيْرِ اللَّهِ لَوَجَدُوا فِيهِ اخْتِلَافًا كَثِيرًا
- If the letter Rāʾ is sākin (رْ) and preceded by a temporary (incidental) kasrah—whether actually pronounced or grammatically implied—it generally occurs when Rāʾ follows Hamzat al-Waṣl (ٱ).
ارْجِعُوا إِلَىٰ أَبِيكُمْ فَقُولُوا يَا أَبَانَا إِنَّ ابْنَكَ سَرَقَ وَمَا شَهِدْنَا إِلَّا بِمَا عَلِمْنَا وَمَا كُنَّا لِلْغَيْبِ حَافِظِينَ
يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ وَلَا يَشْفَعُونَ إِلَّا لِمَنِ ارْتَضَىٰ وَهُم مِّنْ خَشْيَتِهِ مُشْفِقُونَ
- It is sākin, preceded by another sākin letter not yaa’ which in turn was preceded by Fatḥah
وَالْعَصْرِ
- It is sākin, preceded by another sākin letter which in turn was preceded by Ḍammah.
إِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لَفِي خُسْرٍ
- If the letter Rāʾ is sākin (has sukūn), preceded by a letter with a kasrah, and followed by a heavy (mufakhkham) letter that does not have a kasrah, all within the same word.
وَالَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا مَسْجِدًا ضِرَارًا وَكُفْرًا وَتَفْرِيقًا بَيْنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَإِرْصَادًا لِّمَنْ حَارَبَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ مِن قَبْلُ ۚ وَلَيَحْلِفُنَّ إِنْ أَرَدْنَا إِلَّا الْحُسْنَىٰ ۖ وَاللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّهُمْ لَكَاذِبُونَ
وَلَوْ نَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكَ كِتَابًا فِي قِرْطَاسٍ فَلَمَسُوهُ بِأَيْدِيهِمْ لَقَالَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا إِنْ هَٰذَا إِلَّا سِحْرٌ مُّبِينٌ
When to pronounce the letter 'Raa' lightly.
- It carries Kasrah (رِ).
وَكُنُوزٍ وَمَقَامٍ كَرِيمٍ
- It is sākin and the preceding letter has Kasrah, and there is no heavy letter following it.
كَدَأْبِ آلِ فِرْعَوْنَ وَالَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ ۚ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا فَأَخَذَهُمُ اللَّهُ بِذُنُوبِهِمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ شَدِيدُ الْعِقَابِ
- It is sākin, preceded by a sākin letter (not heavy), and that was preceded by Kasrah
هَلْ فِي ذَٰلِكَ قَسَمٌ لِّذِي حِجْرٍ
- It is sākin, preceded by a yā’ leen
بَلِ اللَّهُ مَوْلَاكُمْ ۖ وَهُوَ خَيْرُ النَّاصِرِينَ
When to pronounce the letter 'Raa' heavily or lightly (both are allowed).
- When Rāʾ is sākinah, preceded by a kasrah, and followed by a heavy letter with kasrah:
فَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰ أَنِ اضْرِب بِّعَصَاكَ الْبَحْرَ ۖ فَانفَلَقَ فَكَانَ كُلُّ فِرْقٍ كَالطَّوْدِ الْعَظِيمِ
- When Rāʾ is sākinah, preceded by a sākin heavy letter, which itself is preceded by a kasrah- on stopping on Rāʾ:
فَلَمَّا دَخَلُوا عَلَىٰ يُوسُفَ آوَىٰ إِلَيْهِ أَبَوَيْهِ وَقَالَ ادْخُلُوا مِصْرَ إِن شَاءَ اللَّهُ آمِنِينَ
Summary of rules of Raa in tajwee
Condition | Pronun. | Exa. |
Raaʾ with Fatḥah (رَ) | Heavy | رَمَضَانَ |
Raaʾ with Ḍammah (رُ) | كَفَرُوا | |
Raaʾ is sākin (رْ) after a Fatḥah | مَرْيَمُ | |
Raaʾ is sākin (رْ) after a Ḍammah | يَتَدَبَّرُونَ | |
Raaʾ is sākin after Hamzat al-Waṣl | ارْتَضَىٰ | |
Raaʾ is sākin after another sākin, and before that is Fatḥah | وَالْعَصْرِ | |
Raaʾ is sākin after another sākin, and before that is Ḍammah | خُسْرٍ | |
Raaʾ is sākin, after a Kasrah, followed by a heavy letter without Kasrah | وَإِرْصَادًا | |
Raaʾ with Kasrah (رِ) | Light | كَرِيمٍ |
Raaʾ is sākin, after a Kasrah, and no heavy letter follows | فِرْعَوْنَ | |
Raaʾ is sākin, after a non-heavy sākin letter, preceded by Kasrah | حِجْرٍ | |
Raaʾ is sākin, preceded by a yā’ leen (soft yā’) | خَيْرُ | |
Raaʾ is sākin, after a Kasrah, followed by a heavy letter with Kasrah | Both | فِرْقٍ |
Raaʾ is sākin, after a heavy sākin letter, which was preceded by Kasrah (when stopping) | مِصْرَ |
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