The Vowels Kasra and Damma

Damma Kasra

·        Remember that vowels are not part of the Arabic alphabet
They are little symbols on top or underneath letters

 

·        And you won’t see the vowels written down in normal texts
Only in holy texts, poetry and when you’re learning the language

·        If a letter has a vowel on top or underneath it, it means the vowel comes after that letter

 

بَ = ب + َ

BA = B + A

 

·        There are 3 vowels in Arabic

We already learned about Fat-ha, which is equivalent to A

 

·        The other two are Kasra and Damma

 

ـِ

ـُ

 

·        Kasra looks the same as Fatha except it goes under the letter
And Damma looks like a little ribbon and it goes on top of a letter

 

·        Kasra sounds like the vowel E or I
And Damma sounds like the vowel O or U

 

بَ

بِ

بُ

 

Practice

 

·        Exercise: read the following words then copy them down
Click on the words to hear them

 

تِجارَةُ

بِحارُ

بَشَرُ

شَجُرَ

ثُباتِ

ضُرِبَ

 

·        Exercise: repeat the words you hear

 

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