Khaʾ
خHeavy, but without itbaq: the back of the tongue rises, while the middle stays lower than in ص ض ط ظ.
مِن شَرِّ ٱلْوَسْوَاسِ ٱلْخَنَّاسِ ﴿٤﴾
Heavy letters in Arabic, the seven tafkhim letters
Seven Arabic letters are always read heavy, with a full, deep sound. Here is each one in a real ayah, the five levels of heaviness, and the three letters that change.
The seven heavy letters
They are gathered in the phrase خُصَّ ضَغْطٍ قِظْ (khuṣṣa ḍaghṭin qiẓ). In tajweed they are the letters of isti'la, “rising”, because the back of the tongue rises towards the roof of the mouth when you say them.
Ṣad
صOne of the four letters of itbaq: the tongue presses up against the palate, so it is among the heaviest.
ٱهْدِنَا ٱلصِّرَٰطَ ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمَ ﴿٦﴾
Ḍad
ضOne of the four letters of itbaq: the tongue presses up against the palate, so it is among the heaviest.
وَٱلضُّحَىٰ ﴿١﴾
Ghayn
غHeavy, but without itbaq: the back of the tongue rises, while the middle stays lower than in ص ض ط ظ.
وَمِن شَرِّ غَاسِقٍ إِذَا وَقَبَ ﴿٣﴾
Ṭaʾ
طOne of the four letters of itbaq: the tongue presses up against the palate, so it is among the heaviest.
ٱلَّذِىٓ أَطْعَمَهُم مِّن جُوعٍۢ وَءَامَنَهُم مِّنْ خَوْفٍۭ ﴿٤﴾
Qaf
قHeavy, but without itbaq: the back of the tongue rises, while the middle stays lower than in ص ض ط ظ.
قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ﴿١﴾
Ẓaʾ
ظOne of the four letters of itbaq: the tongue presses up against the palate, so it is among the heaviest.
إِنَّهُۥ ظَنَّ أَن لَّن يَحُورَ ﴿١٤﴾
The five levels of heaviness
A heavy letter is not equally heavy every time. It is fullest with a fatha before an alif and lightest with a kasrah, but it is never read light.
فَإِذَا جَآءَتِ ٱلصَّآخَّةُ ﴿٣٣﴾
ٱللَّهُ ٱلصَّمَدُ ﴿٢﴾
وَٱلضُّحَىٰ ﴿١﴾
ٱلَّذِىٓ أَطْعَمَهُم مِّن جُوعٍۢ وَءَامَنَهُم مِّنْ خَوْفٍۭ ﴿٤﴾
وَقِيلَ مَنْ ۜ رَاقٍۢ ﴿٢٧﴾
Letters that are sometimes heavy
Three letters are heavy in some places and light in others.
Ra
رHeavy with fatha or dammah, light with kasrah, and with sukun it follows the vowel before it. The full rules are on the tajweed rules page.
إِذَا جَآءَ نَصْرُ ٱللَّهِ وَٱلْفَتْحُ ﴿١﴾
وَفِرْعَوْنَ ذِى ٱلْأَوْتَادِ ﴿١٠﴾
The lam of the name Allah
ٱللَّهHeavy after a fatha or dammah, light after a kasrah. Only the name Allah (and Allahumma) changes like this; every other lam is light.
إِذَا جَآءَ نَصْرُ ٱللَّهِ وَٱلْفَتْحُ ﴿١﴾
ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ ﴿٢﴾
Alif
اThe alif has no weight of its own. It follows the letter before it: heavy after a heavy letter, light after a light one.
قَالُوا۟ يَٰوَيْلَنَا مَنۢ بَعَثَنَا مِن مَّرْقَدِنَا ۜ ۗ هَٰذَا مَا وَعَدَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنُ وَصَدَقَ ٱلْمُرْسَلُونَ ﴿٥٢﴾
كَلَّا ۖ بَلْ ۜ رَانَ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِم مَّا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ ﴿١٤﴾
Every example is cut from the Uthmani text (Tanzil) and coloured here. Press ▶ to hear the whole ayah recited by Mahmoud Khalil Al-Husary, via EveryAyah. This lesson is part of the tajweed rules.
Guide
How to say the heavy letters, and the mistakes to avoid
The heavy letters in Arabic are seven: خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ. They are always pronounced with tafkhim, “making heavy”: the back of the tongue rises towards the soft palate, the mouth fills with sound, and the vowel after the letter takes on a deeper colour. Every other letter is light (tarqiq), except ra, the lam of the name Allah and alif, which change with their position.
Heavy and light pairs
Several heavy letters have a light partner made in nearly the same place. Mixing them up changes the word, so this is a clear mistake (lahn jali) that every reciter must avoid:
| Heavy | Light partner | Example of the difference |
|---|---|---|
| ص | س | ṣirāṭ (path) is not sirāṭ |
| ط | ت | ṭīn (clay) and tīn (figs) are different words, both in the Quran |
| ظ | ذ | ẓalla (he remained) and dhalla (he was humbled) |
| ق | ك | qalb (heart) and kalb (dog) |
| ض | د | ḍalla (went astray) and dalla (guided) |
The two strongest groups
Four of the seven, ص ض ط ظ, also have itbaq: the tongue is pressed flat against the roof of the mouth, so they are the heaviest. The other three, خ غ ق, have isti'la without itbaq.
Common mistakes
- Rounding the lips. Heaviness comes from the back of the tongue, not from the lips. ṣa should not sound like “swa”.
- Making the next letter heavy. In صِرَاط the ra is heavy for its own reasons, but in قِيل the ya stays light. Only the heavy letter, and an alif after it, take the weight.
- Making a heavy letter light before kasrah. قِ and طِ are at the lowest level, but still heavy.
- Making light letters heavy. Some learners carry the weight into every letter near a heavy one. Keep س ت ك د light.
About the levels
The five levels shown above are the common teaching in the books of tajweed. Some scholars teach three levels instead (fatha, dammah, kasrah), with a sakin letter taking the level of the vowel before it. Both describe the same sound; learn from your teacher's method.
- Ibn al-Jazari, al-Muqaddimah al-Jazariyyah, the verses on the qualities of the letters (sifat).
- The rules follow the standard tajweed manuals for Hafs from Asim, such as Hidayat al-Mustafid.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Questions
Good to know
What are the 7 heavy letters in Arabic?
خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ, gathered in the phrase khuṣṣa ḍaghṭin qiẓ. They are always pronounced heavy (tafkhim).
What is tafkhim?
Tafkhim means making a letter heavy: raising the back of the tongue so the sound is full and deep. Its opposite is tarqiq, making it light.
Is the letter ra heavy or light?
Both. Ra is heavy with fatha or dammah and light with kasrah. With sukun it follows the vowel before it, with a few exceptions.
Is the lam in Allah heavy?
It is heavy after a fatha or dammah, as in naṣrullāh, and light after a kasrah, as in bismillāh.
What is the difference between isti'la and itbaq?
Isti'la is the back of the tongue rising, in all seven heavy letters. Itbaq is the tongue pressing flat against the palate, in ص ض ط ظ only, which makes them the heaviest.