The Arabic Letter Dhaal (ذ) — How to Pronounce & Write

Dhaal is the ninth letter of the Arabic alphabet. It shares the same angular shape as daal (د) but adds a single dot above. That dot marks a completely different sound: the voiced dental fricative — the “th” you hear in English “the” or “this.” It’s one of only two Arabic letters with this sound, and mastering it is essential for clear pronunciation.

Pronouncing Dhaal

Dhaal is a voiced dental fricative. Your tongue rests lightly against the back of your upper front teeth, and air flows over it while your vocal cords vibrate.

• Tip: Place the tip of your tongue between or just behind your upper front teeth — the same position for the “th” in “the.” Now hum while you blow air over your tongue. You should feel a vibration in your throat and a buzzing on your tongue. That’s the voiced dental fricative. The key is voicing: your vocal cords must be engaged the entire time.
• Common mistake: Making it voiceless — turning it into the “th” of “think” or “bath.” That’s the voiceless dental fricative /θ/, which is the letter ث (thaa). Dhaal is always voiced. If you can’t feel your throat vibrating, you’re making the wrong sound. Another common error is replacing it with “d” — saying “dahab” instead of “dhahab.” The “d” and “th” are distinct sounds in Arabic.

How to write it

Dhaal has the same shape as daal — two lines meeting at an angle — plus a dot above. Like daal, it never connects to the letter after it.

Key rule: Dhaal never changes shape — identical to daal in every position. The dot above is the only difference. In connected handwriting, the dot is sometimes written as a small dash above the letter.

Words with ذ

Here are common words where dhaal appears in different positions. Tap a card to hear the word, flip it to see the meaning.

Watch out for: ذ ث

Dhaal and thaa (ث) produce the same tongue position but differ in voicing — a distinction Arabic treats as fundamental.

Both are dental fricatives — tongue between the teeth, air flowing over it. The difference is vocal cord vibration. For ذ, your throat hums; for ث, it’s just air. Practice switching: ذ… ث… ذ… ث… until you can feel the difference without thinking.

Also watch out for the daal/dhaal pair (د / ذ). Same shape, but daal has no dot and makes a hard “d” sound. In fast speech, speakers sometimes soften daal toward dhaal, but in clear, formal Arabic they’re distinct.

Practice tip

This letter lives and dies by voicing. Try this drill:

1. Say “the” in English and hold the “th” — feel the vibration in your throat
2. Now say it in Arabic: ذَ (dha) — same vibration, same position
3. Alternate: ذَ (dha) — ثَ (tha) — ذَ (dha) — ثَ (tha)

Now try these words, paying attention to the buzzing “th” in each:

ذَهَب (dhahab, gold) — start with the voiced “th” ذِكْر (dhikr, remembrance) — the ذ kicks off the word حَافِظ (hafidh, guardian) — ذ at the end still needs voicing

If you can feel the difference between ذَم (dham, blame) and دَم (dam, blood), you’ve got it. The “th” is the giveaway — that soft, buzzing fricative that daal’s sharp “d” can never produce.

Frequently asked questions

Is dhaal the th in “this”?

Exactly — the voiced dental fricative /ð/, with the tongue between the teeth and the vocal cords buzzing. This, that, and mother all contain it.

How do I tell dhaal from thaa?

Voicing. Say think versus this and feel the vibration switch. On paper, both letters differ only in shape: thaa is the dotted boat, dhaal is the dotted angle.

Does dhaal connect to the next letter?

No — like daal, it is a non-connector and keeps one fixed shape in every position.