Tajweed literally means to make better or to perfect. It is the science of reciting the Qurʾān the way it was revealed — with the correct pronunciation of every letter, the correct duration of every sound, and the correct qualities of every word. The Prophet ﷺ recited it this way, taught it to the Companions, and commanded: "Adorn the Qurʾān with your voices."
Each rule below is colour-coded, comes with interactive audio from master reciters, and is illustrated with examples from the Qurʾān. Click any ▶ button to hear the rule in action.
Ghunna is a nasal resonance produced through the nose — not the mouth. Every instance of nūn (ن) or mīm (م) with a shaddah (ّ) carries a ghunna of 2 counts. Try it: close your mouth, hum through your nose for 2 beats. That is ghunna.
Ghunna appears in two main situations: (1) nūn or mīm with a shaddah, and (2) as part of other rules (idghām, ikhfāʾ, iqlab) where the nasal sound is required.
Madd is the elongation of one of the three long vowels: ā (alif after fatḥah), ī (yāʾ sākin after kasrah), or ū (wāw sākin after ḍammah). Without madd, the Qurʾān sounds rushed and its meaning can change. Arabic distinguishes short and long vowels as entirely different sounds — not just the same sound held longer.
There are several types of madd. The two most important for beginners:
Qalqalah is a slight echoing bounce that occurs when any of the five qalqalah letters appears with a sukūn (no vowel) — either within a word or at the end of it when pausing. The sound does not fully stop; it bounces slightly, like a ball dropped on a hard floor.
The memory device for these five letters from Ibn al-Jazarī's Al-Jazariyyah: collect them as the word قُطُبُ جَدّ — "the pole of a grandfather." Every letter in those two words is a qalqalah letter.
When a nūn carries a sukūn (نْ) or when a word ends with tanwīn (ً ٍ ٌ), one of four rules applies depending on which letter comes next. This is the most systematic set of rules in tajweed — learn these four and you have covered the majority of tajweed applications in the Qurʾān.
The nūn is pronounced clearly with no nasalisation when followed by one of the six throat letters: ء ه ع ح غ خ
The nūn merges completely into the following letter (which belongs to the set ي ر م ل و ن — remembered as يَرْمَلُون). With ي ن م و there is ghunna (nasal). With ر ل there is no ghunna.
When nūn is followed by بَ — the nūn converts to a mīm sound (with ghunna). In the muṣḥaf this is written as a small ۢ above the nūn. There is only one letter that triggers iqlab: bā (ب).
When nūn is followed by any of the remaining 15 letters (everything not covered by the above three rules), the nūn is hidden — not clearly pronounced, not fully merged, but a nasal sound held for 2 counts while the tongue or lips prepare for the next letter. It is a middle state between Iẓhār and Idghām.
Like nūn sākin, the mīm with sukūn (مْ) has rules depending on the next letter. There are three cases:
In Arabic the definite article is ال (al-). The lām in this ال is either pronounced clearly or merged into the following letter. The system is delightfully visual: the 14 Sun Letters (حروف شمسية) assimilate the lām — just like the sun outshines what's around it. The 14 Moon Letters (حروف قمرية) keep the lām clear — like the moon which does not overpower.
Waqf (stopping) and Ibtidāʾ (resuming) are among the most important skills in Quranic recitation — not just for beauty, but for preserving meaning. Pausing in the wrong place can completely change or distort the message of a verse.