Wāw (non-maddiyyah)

Video of the Non-elongated Letter Wāw:

This short video presents the articulation and characteristics of the non-elongated letter Wāw, demonstrating its proper pronunciation with Qur’anic examples, and highlighting the most common pronunciation errors made by readers.

First: The Articulation Point of Non-elongated Wāw:

The non-elongated Wāw is pronounced by rounding and protruding the lips slightly forward, with a slight elevation of the back of the tongue, as shown in the image.

Second: The Main Characteristics of Non-elongated Wāw:

Rakhāwah (flexibility) and Istifāl (Lowering).

يلاحظ في صورة مخرج الواو غير المدية أن المخرج مفتوح، فيجري صوت الحرف عند النطق به، ولا ينقطع فورًا، وهذا ما يعبّر عنه بصفة “الرخاوة”.

The back of the tongue is slightly elevated and the throat is open, this slight elevation does not affect the 'Istifāl' quality of the non-elongated Wāw—it remains a light (Muraqqaq) letter.

Third: Pronunciation of Non-elongated Wāw in Various Forms through Qur’anic Examples:

You can click on the word to hear the correct pronunciation.

First: Non-elongated Wāw in the non-vowelled(Sakin) state:
أَوْ	–	–
﴿أَوۡلَٰدِكُمۡ﴾	–	–

Second: Wāw with short vowels (Harakat):
وَ	وُ	وِ
﴿وَلَدٗا﴾	﴿وُجُوهٞ﴾	﴿وِفَاقًا﴾

Third: Wāw followed by long vowels (Madd letters):
وا	وو	وي
﴿وَادِيًا﴾	﴿تَلۡوُۥنَ﴾	﴿يَسۡتَوِي﴾

Fourth: Wāw with shaddah (When it is doubled):
أَوَّ	أوُّ	أوِّ
﴿أَوَّٰهٞ﴾	﴿تَخَوُّفٖ﴾	﴿أَوِّبِي﴾

Fourth: Common Mistakes in Pronouncing the Non-elongated Letter Wāw:

1.Pressing too hard on the articulation point when Wāw is doubled (Mushaddad), causing a noise to be heard, as in: ﴿خَوَّانًا﴾. The correct way is: ﴿خَوَّانًا﴾. Allah Almighty says: ﴿إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُحِبُّ مَن كَانَ خَوَّانًا أَثِيمٗا﴾.
2.Failing to fully round the lips during pronunciation, such as: ﴿وَجۡهَهُ﴾. The correct way is to round the lips forward: ﴿وَجۡهَهُ﴾. Allah Almighty says: ﴿كُلُّ شَيۡءٍ هَالِكٌ إِلَّا وَجۡهَهُ﴾.
3.Pronounce it heavily (Tafkhīm), especially when adjacent to a heavy letter, such as: ﴿وَٱللَّهُ﴾. The correct way is to pronounce it lightly: ﴿وَٱللَّهُ﴾. Allah Almighty says: ﴿وَٱللَّهُ مُحِيطُۢ بِٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَ﴾.

الرعاية (235)، التحديد (106)، نهاية القول المفيد (55)، هداية القاري (1/69)، التجويد المصور (58-59)، المنير (64).

الرعاية (235)، نهاية القول المفيد (118-119)، هداية القاري (1/97)، التجويد المصور (98)، المنير (95).

Lesson Content

Lesson questions

1. الحروف العربية

Introductions