| Type | When | Counts |
|---|---|---|
| Tabi'i (natural) | A madd letter with no hamzah or sukun after it | 2 |
| Badal | Hamzah, then a madd letter | 2 |
| 'Iwad | Stopping on tanween with fatha | 2 |
| Silah sughra | The ha of the pronoun between two vowels, not before a hamzah | 2 |
| Muttasil (joined) | Madd letter and hamzah in one word | 4 or 5 |
| Munfasil (separated) | Madd letter at the end of a word, hamzah at the start of the next | 4 or 5 |
| Silah kubra | The ha of the pronoun before a hamzah | 4 or 5 |
| 'Arid lil-sukun | Stopping on a word with a madd letter before its last letter | 2, 4 or 6 |
| Lin | Waw or ya with sukun after a fatha, when you stop | 2, 4 or 6 |
| Lazim (necessary) | Madd letter before a sukun or shaddah that never changes | 6 |
Madd, how long to hold each vowel
Madd is lengthening the long vowels. Some are always two counts, some four or five, some six. Here is each type, with a chart and real ayat to listen to.
The madd chart
For the recitation of Hafs from Asim through ash-Shatibiyyah, the one in most printed mushafs.
Each type in an ayah
Madd tabi'i: 2 counts
مَدّ طَبِيعِيThe basic long vowel. Every other madd is built on it.
لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ ﴿٣﴾
لَآ أَعْبُدُ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ ﴿٢﴾
Madd muttasil: 4 or 5 counts
مَدّ مُتَّصِلMadd letter and hamzah in the same word. It is wajib to lengthen it beyond two counts.
وَٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلطَّارِقِ ﴿١﴾
Madd munfasil: 4 or 5 counts
مَدّ مُنْفَصِلThe madd letter ends one word and the hamzah begins the next.
لَآ أَعْبُدُ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ ﴿٢﴾
Madd lazim: 6 counts
مَدّ لَازِمAlways six counts, whether you stop or carry on. In a word (kalimi) and in the opening letters of some surahs (harfi).
فَإِذَا جَآءَتِ ٱلصَّآخَّةُ ﴿٣٣﴾
نٓ ۚ وَٱلْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ ﴿١﴾
Madd 'arid lil-sukun: 2, 4 or 6
مَدّ عَارِض لِلسُّكُونOnly when you stop. Choose one length and keep it for the whole recitation.
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ ﴿٥﴾
Madd lin: 2, 4 or 6 when stopping
مَدّ لِينA soft aw or ay before the last letter, when you stop on it.
ٱلَّذِىٓ أَطْعَمَهُم مِّن جُوعٍۢ وَءَامَنَهُم مِّنْ خَوْفٍۭ ﴿٤﴾
Madd badal: 2 counts
مَدّ بَدَلA hamzah followed by a madd letter. In Hafs it is two counts.
إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتِ فَلَهُمْ أَجْرٌ غَيْرُ مَمْنُونٍۢ ﴿٦﴾
Madd 'iwad: 2 counts
مَدّ عِوَضStopping on tanween with fatha: the tanween becomes a two-count alif.
فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَٱسْتَغْفِرْهُ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ تَوَّابًۢا ﴿٣﴾
Madd silah: the ha of the pronoun
مَدّ صِلَةBetween two vowelled letters, the pronoun ha is lengthened: two counts (sughra), or four or five before a hamzah (kubra).
فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَٱسْتَغْفِرْهُ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ تَوَّابًۢا ﴿٣﴾
أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَّمْ يَرَهُۥٓ أَحَدٌ ﴿٧﴾
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
Madd made simple, letters, causes and counts
Madd means “stretching”. In tajweed it is holding a long vowel for a set number of counts. There are three madd letters: ا after a fatha, و with sukun after a dammah, and ي with sukun after a kasrah. On its own a madd letter is held for two counts. What comes after it, a hamzah or a sukun, decides whether it is held longer.
The two causes
- Hamzah after the madd letter makes muttasil (same word) or munfasil (next word): 4 or 5 counts. A hamzah before it makes badal: 2 counts.
- Sukun after the madd letter makes lazim if it is always there (6 counts), or 'arid if it comes only because you stop (2, 4 or 6).
What a count is
One count (harakah) is the time it takes to fold or unfold a finger at an even pace. The counts are relative: at a fast pace (hadr) they are shorter, at a slow pace (tahqiq) longer. What matters is that each madd keeps its proportion: a six-count madd is three times a natural one, every time.
Be consistent
Where you have a choice, as with munfasil (4 or 5) or 'arid (2, 4 or 6), pick one length and keep it throughout the recitation. Do not hold one munfasil for four and the next for five. And 'arid should not be longer than a muttasil in the same recitation.
Common mistakes
- Shortening the natural madd. Reading مَا as “ma” changes the word.
- Lengthening a short vowel. Adding a madd where there is no madd letter, such as “maaliki” for a short a.
- Uneven counts between the same types of madd.
- Forgetting lazim in ٱلضَّآلِّينَ at the end of Al-Fatiha: it is always six.
Other narrations
The counts here are for Hafs through ash-Shatibiyyah. Other turuq of Hafs read munfasil as two counts, and other qira'at differ again. Follow your teacher's chain.
- Ibn al-Jazari, al-Muqaddimah al-Jazariyyah, the verses on madd, and an-Nashr fi al-Qira'at al-Ashr.
- The counts follow the standard tajweed manuals for Hafs from Asim through ash-Shatibiyyah, such as Hidayat al-Mustafid.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Questions
Good to know
How many types of madd are there?
Most books list the natural madd and nine or more secondary ones: muttasil, munfasil, lazim, 'arid lil-sukun, lin, badal, 'iwad and silah, with lazim divided into four kinds.
How many counts is madd muttasil?
4 or 5 counts in Hafs through ash-Shatibiyyah. It is never shortened to two.
Which madd is always 6 counts?
Madd lazim, as in aḍ-ḍāllīn and the opening letters of surahs such as Alif Lam Mim.
What are the 3 letters of madd?
Alif after a fatha, waw with sukun after a dammah, and ya with sukun after a kasrah.
What is the difference between muttasil and munfasil?
In muttasil the hamzah is in the same word as the madd letter; in munfasil it is at the start of the next word.