Exam Prep

Question 1

How many letters are there in Arabic?

Answer 1

28 letters

Question 2

What are the names of heavy and light letters? And which ones are heavy?

Answer 2

• Heavy = Tafkheem (7): Pronounced with a full mouth

خ ص ض ط ظ غ ق

• Light = Tareeq (21)

Exceptions: ل and ر
• ر is heavy when it has a fatha or dhamma, light with a kasra
• ل is heavy only in the name of Allah (SWT), but light when saying Bismillah (where the
name of Allah is preceded by a kasra)

Question 3

Explain and list the naughty letters?

Answer 3

• Naughty letters join from the right but not the left
• There are 6 naughty letters
  ا د ذرزؤ

Question 4

What does Makhaarij mean?

Answer 4

Where the letters come from

Question 5

What are the 5 organs of speech?

Answer 5

• Al Jawf (The empty space between the mouth and the throat)
• Al-Halq (The throat)
• Al-lisaan (The tongue)
• Ashafataan (The two lips)
• Al khayshoom (The nasal passage)

Question 6

Explain Al Jawf

Answer 6

• Meaning: The empty space between the mouth and the throat (Aa, ee, uu)
• The letters of Al Jawf are the - 3 long voels which are:
• Alif Saakinah before it a fatha
• Waw saakinah before it a damma
• Yaa saakinah before it a kasra

Question 7

Explain Al Halq

Answer 7

• Meaning: The throat
• There are six letters and 3 are articulation points

1. Top: غ خ
2. Middle: ع ح
3. Bottom/Deep: ء ه

Question 8

Explain Al Lisaan

Answer 8

Meaning (the tongue)
- 18 letters, 4 areas/sections, 10 articulation points

1. back of the tongue (2 articulation points and 2 letters):
   ك , ق
2. middle of the tongue (1 articulation point and 3 letters):
   ي ش ج
3. side of the tongue (2 letters, 2 articulation points):
   ض , ل
4. tip of the tongue (11 letters, 5 articulation points)
   ن , ر , ت د ط , س ص ز , ث ذ ظ

Question 9

Back of tongue

Answer 9

1. back of the tongue (2 articulation points and 2 letters):
   ك , ق

Question 10

Middle of tongue

Answer 10

2. middle of the tongue (1 articulation point and 3 letters):
   ‎ي ش ج

Question 11

Side of tongue

Answer 11

3. side of the tongue (2 letters, 2 articulation points):

‎ض , ل

Question 12

Tip of tongue

Answer 12

4. tip of the tongue (11 letters, 5 articulation points)

‎ن , ر , ت د ط , س ص ز , ث ذ ظ

Question 13

Explain Ashafatan

Answer 13

Meaning (The lips)

4 letters, 2 articulation points

1. Upper teeth touching lower lip: ف
2. use both lips: ب م و

Question 14

Explain Al khayshoom

Answer 14

• Meaning: Nasal passage
• 2 letters: مّ نّ
• Both have characteristics of ghunna waajiba
• say letters with a blocked nose, and hold onto it for two counts.

Question 15

Qalqalah letters

Answer 15

• 5 letters
• We must bounce or vibrate when they have a sukoon [ ] on them.
قْ طْ بْ جْ دْ
Qa-Tt-Bu-Ja-D

Question 16

Explain Leen Letters

Answer 16

• 2 letters: يْ وْ

• Not long letters but can be stretched like long vowels when followed by a stopping
sukoon.

• Become OWW and AYY

• Fatha before them
• only stretch at the end

Question 17

Explain Hamzatal Wasl

Answer 17

• Shaped like Alif with the head of Saad [ ٱ ], Comes from Al Halq
• Has an ‘aah’ sound like a hamzah
• Say it at the beginning, drop it in the middle of a word.
• Never carries a vowel! Can sometimes see vowel by looking @ 3rd letter
• When paired with a Laam, becomes Al [ ٱل ]

Question 18

Hamzatal Qat

Answer 18

• Your normal hamzah, ‘aah’ sound
• Never silent!
• Can use Alif, Waaw, and Yaa as a chair [ أ إ ؤ ئ ]
• The vowel is always written

Question 19

Alif

Answer 19

• Not a letter, it’s a long vowel. See: Al Jawf and Stretching.
• Always Saakinah. Must be preceded by a fatha
• Silent with Fathataan

Question 20

List Harakah

Answer 20

• short vowels: Hold for 1 count
  1. Fatha
  2. Kasra
  3. Dhamma
  4. Sukoon [ ]
  5. Shaddah

Question 21

Explain Kasra

Answer 21

2. Kasra ( ـِ )

• ee sound – lowering the jaw

Question 22

Explain dhamma

Answer 22

[ اُ ]

• oo sound – circle the lips

Question 23

Explain Fatha

Answer 23

1. Fatha ( ـَ )

• ah sound opening the mouth

Question 24

Explain Sukoon

Answer 24

[اْ]
• silent vowel
• If haraka is a movement, sukoon doesn’t want movement. Just say the sound.
• Always preceded by a harakah (fatha, kasra, dhamma). Join with the letter before it.

Question 25

Explain Shaddah

Answer 25

[اّ] Double prominence. • Say first with a sukoon (join to letter before) and then with harakah

Question 26

Explain Long vowels

Answer 26

• stretch 2 counts (See also: Al Jawf) 1. Alif Saakinah before it a Fatha [ اْ ] • Or Alif Maqsoora [ ى ] (shaped like a yaa with no dots and no harakah). 2. Yaa Saakinah before it a Kasra [ يْ ] 3. Waaw Saahinah before it a dhamma [ وْ ] • Or waaw with no harakah

Question 27

Further elongation

Answer 27

* Wiggly line [ آ ] means stretch more than 2 counts (4-5 or 6). * Stretch 4-5 counts when there is a hamzah after a long vowel. Stretch 6 counts when there is a shaddah after a long vowel.

Question 28

Rules of Joining

Answer 28

1. If they have a tail (below the line), cut it off. 2. When joining, shorten letters. 3. Last letter keeps its full shape 4. Naughty letters only join from one side.

Question 29

Explain the precedence of shaddah

Answer 29

* Cannot read two saakin (sukoon) next to one another or a sukoon followed by a shaddah (because it follows the rules of sukoon). We must always drop the first sukoon, and keep the last shaddah or sukoon. * Important: when applying rule to shaddahs, this only applies when the sukoon is before the shaddah not after, because a shaddah ends in a harakah. * Long vowels carry a sukoon (which isn’t written). * Applies to tanween (double vowels) when they are away from each other (ignore). When they are next to each other, say it. * With Othmani script, when the letter is silent it will have no harakah.

Question 30

Rules of stopping

Answer 30

Rules of Stopping • Hold breath until stopping (end of Ayah). If not, look for little stopping signs. If there are no stopping signs, must read until Ayah has full meaning. • Put a stopping sukoon at the end of each Ayah. o If not stopping, use the end harakah to combine two Ayah in one breath. • When stopping on fathataan, make it a long vowel Alif o Exception: Taa Marboota [ ة ] becomes a haa saakinah [ هْ ] even with fathataan • When stopping on a regular long vowel, keep the stretch (2 counts). o Exception: with the small detatched و and ى long vowels, only stretch if continuing. • When stopping on a long vowel with Madd sign [ آ ], if it is not connected to the hamzah/shaddah after it, only stretch 2 counts.

Question 31

Special Rules of Surahs on Exam

Answer 31

* Surah An-Nas has Al Khayshoom (the nasal passage) | * Surah Al-Falaq (Ayah 2 + 3) and Al Ikhlaas (every Ayah) have Qalqalah letters