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Unit 4 · Spelling and speech · Read
Spelling and speech
Know which clues print supplies and which come from the whole word.
الفصحى
al-fuṣḥā: the Arabic name for the standard language
One written standard, many spoken varieties
MSA is the shared formal reading variety of books, news and signs. Everyday spoken Arabic differs by region, so a word may sound different in Cairo, Amman or Casablanca. Our recordings follow MSA.
قلمكتاب
Normal print: qalam, pen · kitāb, book
Read, then confirm with the whole word
Short vowels are often unwritten, so word knowledge and context matter. Pen, book and house are printed here without marks, as you will see them on signs and menus.
قلم
pen
كتاب
book
بيت
house
الشَّمْسالْقَمَر
ash-shams, the sun · al-qamar, the moon
Written, but not always spoken
The article ال always looks the same, but before some letters its l is not spoken and the next consonant is doubled: ash-shams, the sun. Before others it stays: al-qamar, the moon.
الشَّمْس
the sun
الْقَمَر
the moon
Melody shows questions and emphasis, not a new word
No tones, unmarked stress
Arabic does not use word tones, and stress is not written. Stress depends on syllable structure: kitāb, book, and muʿallim, teacher, are stressed on their long or closed syllable. Follow complete-word audio rather than an English stress pattern.
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