Tafkheem and tarqeeq: heavy and light letters
Some Arabic letters are pronounced heavy (tafkheem), with a full, deep sound, and others light (tarqeeq). Seven letters are always heavy, most are always light, and three change depending on their vowels: raa, the lam in the name Allah, and alif.
Last updated: 1 October 2026
Always-heavy letters
The seven letters of elevation (isti‘la) are always heavy: خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ, collected in the phrase خُصَّ ضَغْطٍ قِظْ. The heaviness is strongest when the letter has a fathah, a little less with a dammah, and lightest with a kasrah, but it is always heavier than a light letter. Mixing up heavy and light pairs, such as ص and س or ط and ت, is one of the most common mistakes; see makharij al huruf.
Letters that change
All other letters are light, except three:
- Raa: heavy or light depending on its vowel (below).
- Lam in the name Allah: heavy or light depending on the vowel before it (below).
- Alif: follows the letter before it, heavy in قَالَ, light in كَانَ.
Rules for raa
| Raa is… | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy | It has a fathah or dammah | رَبِّ, رُسُلُ |
| Light | It has a kasrah | رِجَالٌ |
| Heavy | It has a sukoon and the letter before has a fathah or dammah | مَرْيَمَ, ٱلْقُرْءَانُ |
| Light | It has a sukoon after an original kasrah in the same word, with no heavy letter after it | فِرْعَوْنَ |
| Heavy | It has a sukoon after a kasrah, but a heavy letter follows in the same word | مِرْصَادًا |
When you stop on a raa, look at the letter before it; the details of stopping are covered in stop signs in the Quran.
The lam in "Allah"
The lam in the name ٱللَّه is heavy when the vowel before it is a fathah or dammah, as in قَالَ ٱللَّهُ and عَبْدُ ٱللَّهِ, and when you begin a sentence with the name. It is light after a kasrah, as in بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ. Everywhere else, lam is light.
For every rule family, see our tajweed rules guide; to have a teacher correct your heavy and light letters, see our tajweed course.
Frequently asked questions
What does tafkheem mean?
Tafkheem means making a letter heavy (full): the back of the tongue rises towards the roof of the mouth, giving a deeper sound. Tarqeeq means making it light (thin).
Which letters are always heavy?
Seven: خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ, remembered by the phrase خُصَّ ضَغْطٍ قِظْ.
Is alif heavy or light?
Neither on its own. A long alif follows the letter before it: heavy after a heavy letter (as in قَالَ), light after a light one (as in كَانَ).
Is the raa in "Maryam" heavy or light?
Heavy. In مَرْيَمَ the raa has a sukoon and the letter before it has a fathah, so it is read heavy.
Hear the difference with a teacher
Three free one-to-one lessons in UK time, with heavy and light letters corrected as you read.