# Tafkheem & tarqeeq (heavy and light letters) (التَّفْخِيم وَالتَّرْقِيق)

Some letters are always heavy (خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ); ra and the lam of Allah are heavy after fatha or damma and light after kasra.

## Definition

Tafkheem (“thickening”) fills the mouth with a deep, full sound; tarqeeq (“thinning”) keeps it light. Seven letters (خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ) are always heavy. The ra and the lam of the name Allah change: the lam of Allah is heavy after a fatha or damma (قَالَ ٱللَّهُ) and light after a kasra (بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ); a ra carrying a fatha or damma is heavy, a ra carrying a kasra is light. Further cases of a sakin ra depend on the letters around it and are best learned with a teacher.

**Letters:** خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ. The seven always-heavy letters, remembered as خُصَّ ضَغْطٍ قِظْ.

## How to pronounce

1. Heavy: raise the back of the tongue toward the palate so the sound is full and round.
2. Light: keep the tongue low and the sound thin and clear.
3. Check the vowel before the lam of Allah, then decide: fatha or damma = heavy, kasra = light.

## Examples from the Quran

### Lam of Allah: heavy (after fatha or damma)

- قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ  (Al-Ikhlas 112:1): Say, "He is Allāh, [who is] One, — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-ikhlas/1
- نَارُ ٱللَّهِ ٱلْمُوقَدَةُ  (Al-Humazah 104:6): It is the fire of Allāh, [eternally] fueled, — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-humazah/6
- وَٱللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يُوعُونَ  (Al-Inshiqaq 84:23): And Allāh is most knowing of what they keep within themselves. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-inshiqaq/23

### Lam of Allah: light (after kasra)

- بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ  (Al-Fatihah 1:1): In the name of Allāh, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-fatihah/1
- لَيْسَ لَهَا مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ كَاشِفَةٌ  (An-Najm 53:58): Of it, [from those] besides Allāh, there is no remover. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/an-najm/58
- وَلَآ أُقْسِمُ بِٱلنَّفْسِ ٱللَّوَّامَةِ  (Al-Qiyamah 75:2): And I swear by the reproaching soul [to the certainty of resurrection]. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-qiyamah/2

### Ra: heavy (with fatha or damma)

- فَحَشَرَ فَنَادَىٰ  (An-Nazi'at 79:23): And he gathered [his people] and called out. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/an-naziat/23
- بِأَيْدِى سَفَرَةٍ  ('Abasa 80:15): [Carried] by the hands of messenger-angels, — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/abasa/15
- سَيَذَّكَّرُ مَن يَخْشَىٰ  (Al-A'la 87:10): He who fears [Allāh] will be reminded. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-ala/10

### Ra: light (with kasra)

- فِيهَا عَيْنٌ جَارِيَةٌ  (Al-Ghashiyah 88:12): Within it is a flowing spring. — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-ghashiyah/12
- وَٱلْقَمَرِ إِذَا ٱتَّسَقَ  (Al-Inshiqaq 84:18): And [by] the moon when it becomes full — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-inshiqaq/18
- سَنُقْرِئُكَ فَلَا تَنسَىٰٓ  (Al-A'la 87:6): We will make you recite, [O Muḥammad], and you will not forget, — https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/surah/al-ala/6

## Common mistakes

- Making the lam of Allah heavy after a kasra, or light after a fatha.
- Thinning ق or ط to “k” or “t”.

## FAQ

**When is the lam of Allah heavy?** After a fatha or damma (for example وَٱللَّهُ, قَالَ ٱللَّهُ). It is light after a kasra (بِٱللَّهِ).

**Are the examples coloured?** Quran.com’s colour data has no class for this, so heavy cases are shown in orange and light cases in blue on these pages.

## Related

- [Qalqalah (echoing)](https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/learn/tajweed/qalqalah)
- [Lam shamsiyyah & lam qamariyyah](https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/learn/tajweed/lam-shamsiyyah-qamariyyah)
- [Hamzatul wasl (connecting hamza)](https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/learn/tajweed/hamzatul-wasl)

Cite: Tafkheem & tarqeeq (heavy and light letters). Noor Quran. https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/learn/tajweed/tafkheem-tarqeeq

Canonical: https://holy-quran-noor.vercel.app/learn/tajweed/tafkheem-tarqeeq