Two important marks: Tanwin adds an "n" sound to word endings, and Shadda doubles a consonant.
Tanwin — Nunation ( تَنْوِين )
Tanwin is a "double vowel" mark placed at the end of words. It adds an "n" sound to the final vowel. You'll hear this constantly in Arabic — especially when reading Quran.
كِتَابًا
Tanwin Fatha — ( ً )
"an" ending — kitāban
كِتَابٍ
Tanwin Kasra — ( ٍ )
"in" ending — kitābin
كِتَابٌ
Tanwin Damma — ( ٌ )
"un" ending — kitābun
Quick Rule: When a word ends with Tanwin Damma (ٌ) it means it's the subject of the sentence. Tanwin Kasra (ٍ) means possession or after a preposition. Tanwin Fatha (ً) typically marks the object. Don't worry about grammar rules yet — just focus on the sounds!
Tanwin in Common Words
رَجُلٌ
rajulun
a man
بَيْتٌ
baytun
a house
كِتَابًا
kitāban
a book (object)
عِلْمًا
'ilman
knowledge
Shadda — The Doubling Mark ( ّ )
Shadda ( ّ ) looks like a small "w" shape above a letter. It means the letter is doubled — you hold it for twice as long. It dramatically changes the meaning of a word.
مُحَمَّد
Muhammad ﷺ
The م (Mim) has Shadda — "Muḥam-mad"
How it sounds: If a letter has Shadda, pronounce it like it appears twice. For example: مُحَمَّد = mu-ḥam-mad (hold the "m" longer).
رَبِّ
Rabb-i
My Lord (Ba doubled)
إِنَّ
inna
Indeed (Nun doubled)
Shadda + Vowels
Shadda is always written with a vowel on top or below. Here are the common combinations using Ba (ب):
Mark
Symbol
Pronunciation
Example
Shadda + Fatha
بَّ
bba (doubled "b" + "a")
Shadda + Kasra
بِّ
bbi (doubled "b" + "i")
Shadda + Damma
بُّ
bbu (doubled "b" + "u")
You've completed Phase 2! You now know all the vowels, long vowels, Sukoon, Tanwin and Shadda. Next we'll learn how letters connect together to form words.