Free printable and interactive

Makharij Chart: Where Each Letter Is Made

The five articulation areas and 17 places of the Arabic letters, in plain English. Tap or hover a letter to see where it comes from, or print the chart.

Tap, hover or tab to a letter in the chart to see where it is pronounced. The whole chart is also readable without JavaScript.

Tapping a letter to see its area needs JavaScript. The chart below lists every area, place and letter with a plain-English description, and works without it.

Makharij: where the Arabic letters come from (المخارج)

5 areas, 17 places. The coloured line under each letter shows its area.

1. Al-Jawf (الجوف)

The open space of the mouth and throat. 1 place, for the long vowels.

Places and letters for Al-Jawf
Place	Letters	Where in the mouth
1	Alif (long vowel), Waw (long vowel), Ya (long vowel)	No part of the mouth touches. The sound of a long vowel flows through the open space: alif after a fatha, waw sakinah after a damma, ya sakinah after a kasra.

2. Al-Halq (الحلق)

The throat. 3 places, 6 letters.

Places and letters for Al-Halq
Place	Letters	Where in the mouth
2	Hamzah, Ha	The deepest part of the throat, furthest from the mouth.
3	Ayn, Haa	The middle of the throat.
4	Ghayn, Khaa	The top of the throat, nearest the mouth.

3. Al-Lisan (اللسان)

The tongue. 10 places, 18 letters, from the back of the tongue to its tip.

Places and letters for Al-Lisan
Place	Letters	Where in the mouth
5	Qaf	The very back of the tongue, touching the soft palate above it.
6	Kaf	The back of the tongue, a little forward of ق, touching the palate.
7	Jeem, Sheen, Ya	The middle of the tongue against the hard palate above it.
8	Daad	The side edge of the tongue against the upper back teeth (molars).
9	Lam	The edges of the front of the tongue, touching the gum above the upper front teeth.
10	Noon	The tip of the tongue touching the gum above the upper front teeth, just below the place of ل.
11	Ra	Like ن, but a little further back on the tongue tip.
12	Taa, Dal, Ta	The tip of the tongue against the base of the upper front teeth.
13	Saad, Zay, Seen	The tip of the tongue just above the lower front teeth, with a narrow gap so the air hisses through.
14	Zaa, Dhal, Tha	The tip of the tongue touching the edges of the upper front teeth.

4. Ash-Shafatayn (الشفتان)

The two lips. 2 places, 4 letters.

Places and letters for Ash-Shafatayn
Place	Letters	Where in the mouth
15	Fa	The inside of the lower lip against the tips of the upper front teeth.
16	Ba, Meem, Waw	Both lips. For ب and م the lips close; for و they round into a small circle without closing.

5. Al-Khayshum (الخيشوم)

The nasal passage. 1 place, for the nasal hum.

Places and letters for Al-Khayshum
Place	Letters	Where in the mouth
17	Ghunnah (nasal hum)	The nasal passage. This is where ghunnah comes from: the nasal hum on a noon or meem with shaddah, and in the rules of idgham and ikhfa. It is a quality of sound rather than a letter.

Hamzah (ء) is shown in the throat and alif (ا) in the open space, because alif is the long “aa” vowel. The letters و and ي appear twice: as long vowels in al-jawf and as consonants in the lips and the tongue. 17 places in five areas is the commonly taught count; some scholars count the places differently.

Understanding the makharij

Every Arabic letter has a home: a place in the mouth, throat, lips or nose where the sound is made. These places are called the makharij. Arabic has several pairs and trios of letters that sound alike to an English ear, such as ت and ط, س and ص, or ث ذ and ظ. Telling them apart depends entirely on where the tongue and throat work, which is why the makharij are the first topic of tajweed. Get the place right and the sound follows.

How to use this chart. Work from the deepest place to the front: the throat first, then the back of the tongue, the middle, the tip, the lips and finally the nasal hum. Tap a letter to see its area and a short description, then say the letter with a fatha (for example “qa” or “ʿa”) while feeling where your tongue or throat moves. Do this in front of a mirror for the lips and tongue tip. Print the chart and keep it beside your Quran for revision. For the full explanation, read our guide to makharij: Arabic letters explained.

Common mistakes. The most frequent errors are saying ق too far forward so that it sounds like a ك, pronouncing ع as a plain vowel, making ح like ه, reading ص ض ط ظ without their heavy quality and replacing ث or ذ with a س or a ز. Another is producing the ghunnah only from the mouth, when it should come through the nose. Watch for these when you check yourself, and notice that the throat letters (ء ه ع ح غ خ) are the hardest for most learners because English does not use those places in the same way.

When a live teacher helps. You cannot see inside your own mouth, and a chart cannot hear you. A teacher can listen to a sound, tell you it is coming from the wrong place and show you how to move it, which is much quicker than guessing alone. In our one-to-one Tajweed classes the makharij are practised letter by letter. Use this chart together with the tajweed cheat sheet, test yourself with the tajweed quiz and learn the lengthening rules with the madd rules chart. If you are still at the letters stage, see the Noorani Qaida course and pricing, or book a free trial.

Frequently asked questions

What are the makharij?

Makharij (singular makhraj) are the places in the mouth, throat, lips and nose where each Arabic letter is produced. Knowing a letter's makhraj helps you pronounce it correctly and tell similar letters apart.

How many makharij are there?

The commonly taught count is 17 places grouped into five areas: the open space of the mouth and throat (al-jawf), the throat (al-halq), the tongue (al-lisan), the lips (ash-shafatayn) and the nasal passage (al-khayshum). Some scholars count slightly differently, so you may see other numbers in other books.

Why is hamzah in the throat when alif is in the open space?

Hamzah (ء) is a consonant produced at the deepest part of the throat. The alif is the long "aa" vowel, produced in the open space of the mouth and throat (al-jawf). They look similar in writing, which is why they are often confused.

Can I learn the makharij from a chart?

A chart tells you where to look and is excellent for revision, but the sounds themselves are learned by listening and copying. A teacher can hear whether you are producing a letter from the right place and correct it straight away.

What does the nasal passage letter mean?

Al-khayshum is not a letter. It is the place the nasal hum called ghunnah comes from, as heard on a noon or meem with a shaddah and in the rules of idgham and ikhfa. It is included in the chart because it is one of the five areas.

Learn with a teacher, one-to-one

A chart or a planner helps, but correct pronunciation comes from a teacher who can hear you. Book a free trial class (no card required) or message us with any question. Paid classes are settled by bank/wire transfer after the free trial.

Book a free trial class Ask us on WhatsApp

Explore: Noorani Qaida Tajweed Hifz Pricing

Related guides

More tools: all free resources.