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Urdu Script & Pronunciation

Nastaliq alphabet, vowel marks, and pronunciation rules
ا ب پ ت
a b p t
a b p t
First four letters of Urdu alphabet (Nastaliq script, read right to left)
ث ج چ ح
s j ch h
s j ch h
Letters ث (s), ج (j), چ (ch), ح (h) — note two ways to write 's'
خ د ڈ ذ
kh d d z
kh d ḍ z
خ (kh as in loch), ڈ is retroflex D distinct from د
ر ڑ ز ژ
r r z zh
r ṛ z zh
ڑ is retroflex flap; ژ used in loanwords only
س ش ص ض
s sh s z
s sh ṣ ẓ
Multiple letters share sounds; ص ض used in Arabic loanwords
ط ظ ع غ
t z a gh
ṭ ẓ ' gh
ع is a pharyngeal sound; غ is a voiced velar fricative
ف ق ک گ
f q k g
f q k g
ق is a uvular stop; گ is unique to Urdu/Persian vs Arabic
ل م ن و
l m n v/w
l m n v/w
و serves as consonant (v/w) and vowel (o/u)
ہ ھ ی ے
h h y e
h h y e
ہ and ھ differ; ھ forms aspirated consonants like بھ (bh)
آ اِ اُ
long a, short i, short u
ā, i, u
Three basic vowel diacritics: ā (madd), zer (i), pesh (u)