Some Arabic letters sound full and deep. Others sound thin and light. In Tajweed, these are the heavy and the light letters. This guide shows the seven letters that are always heavy and how to say them. It also shows how to keep the light letters light. Last, it looks at Raa and the Laam in the name Allah, which can be heavy or light.
The examples use English letters, and English letters cannot show every Arabic sound. Check each word with a teacher or a good reciter. The rules follow the Hafs reading, like our other Tajweed guides.
What Are the Heavy Letters in Tajweed?
Seven letters are always heavy: khaa, saad, daad, Taa, Zaa, ghayn and qaaf. To say one, raise the back of your tongue. The sound turns full and deep. The other letters are mostly light and thin. Raa and the Laam in the name Allah can go either way: heavy in some places, light in others.
Arabic books call this quality isti'la, which means rising up. The back of the tongue rises towards the roof of the mouth, and that gives the sound its fullness.
The classic Tajweed poem packs the seven letters into three short words. They are khussa (khaa, saad), daghtin (daad, ghayn, Taa) and qiz (qaaf, Zaa). Learn the three words, and you have the seven letters.
The Seven Heavy Letters, With a Quran Example for Each
Each row has one example word. Open the link to see the ayah on Quran.com:
| Heavy letter | Example word | Ayah |
|---|---|---|
| Khaa | khusr | Quran 103:2 |
| Saad | as-siraat | Quran 1:6 |
| Daad | ad-daalleen | Quran 1:7 |
| Ghayn | al-maghdoobi | Quran 1:7 |
| Taa | as-siraat | Quran 1:6 |
| Qaaf | al-mustaqeem | Quran 1:6 |
| Zaa | zahraka | Quran 94:3 |
A heavy letter stays heavy with any vowel. The saad in 'as-siraat' has a kasra, and it is still full and deep. That word has a Taa too, and it is heavy as well. Four of the seven letters are the fullest: saad, daad, Taa and Zaa. Khaa, ghayn and qaaf are heavy too, but a little less full.
Qaaf and Taa are also qalqalah letters. When either has no vowel, it bounces and stays heavy. Read more in our guide to qalqalah letters in Tajweed.
What Are the Light Letters?
Most other letters are light, apart from the special cases in the next section. For a light letter, the back of the tongue stays low, and the sound is thin. A light letter must stay light, even when it sits next to a heavy letter. A heavy letter next to it can pull it towards fullness.
Take 'al-mustaqeem' (Quran 1:6). The taa in the middle is a light letter, and it comes right before the heavy qaaf. Say the taa thin, then say the qaaf full. The classic Tajweed poem tells the reader to say the light letters thin.
Raa and the Laam in Allah: Sometimes Heavy
Raa and the Laam in the name Allah can be heavy or light. For the Laam in Allah, the vowel before it decides. After a fatha or a damma, it is heavy. After a kasra, it is light.
Here are two examples. In Quran 112:1, 'huwa Allahu' comes after a fatha, so the Laam is heavy. In Quran 1:1, 'bismi Allahi' comes after a kasra, so the Laam is light.
Raa has more rules, so it needs a lesson of its own. There are a few more cases too. A teacher will show you these one at a time.
Why Do Heavy and Light Letters Matter?
A heavy letter that is said light can sound like a different letter. Murshid al-Qari Part 3 gives an example in 'zillan zaleelan' (Quran 4:57), which means 'deepening shade'. Without the full, deep sound of the Zaa, the words come out as a different pair. The meaning then moves from shade to disgrace.
That is why teachers fix this slip early. Our guide to common Tajweed mistakes shows what a heavy letter said light sounds like. It also shows how to fix it. For where this rule sits among all the others, see the order to learn the Tajweed rules.
Practise Heavy and Light Letters With Your Teacher
Use these steps for a week. They take a few minutes a day:
- Step 1: Say the seven letters aloud with the three words 'khussa daghtin qiz'.
- Step 2: Practise in pairs: seen and saad, taa and Taa, dhaal and Zaa, kaaf and qaaf. Say the light letter first, then the heavy one, and feel the back of your tongue rise.
- Step 3: Read Surah Al-Fatihah slowly. Find the heavy letters in ayah 6 and ayah 7.
- Step 4: Record yourself on your phone. Is each heavy letter full? Is the light taa in 'al-mustaqeem' still thin?
- Step 5: Read the same ayahs to a teacher.
Ask a qualified teacher to hear you read. A teacher can hear if a heavy letter is too thin, or if a light letter is too full. To keep the seven letters in view, print our free Tajweed rules chart and put it next to your Quran.
Get Your Heavy and Light Letters Checked
Our online Tajweed classes at Salam Campus are live and 1-on-1. Each lesson is 30 minutes. Your tutor hears each letter and corrects it right away. You can ask for a male or a female tutor.
Not sure which of your letters are too thin or too full? Book a free 30-minute trial class. Read a short surah for the tutor and hear which sound to fix first. No card is needed.