Alphabet & Word Formation

Dari/Farsi script is written from right to left. However, most characters sound very similar to those of their English counterparts.

ج J - G Jeem	ث S Se	ت T  Te	پ P  Pe	ب B   Be	ا A  Alef آ - Aa
ر R Re	ذ Z Zaal	د D Daal	خ KH Khe	ح H Hay	چ CH Che
ض Z Dhowat	ص  S Sowat	ش SH Sheen	س S Seen	ژ  Zshe	ز Z Ze
قQ Qaaf	ف F Fe	غ GH Ghayn	ع A Ayn	ظ Z Zoy	ط T Toy
و W, V Waw ------------     I,  E, Y, ئ    Yaa -------------  HAY, H  ه	ن N Noon	م M Meem	ل L Laam	گ G Gaaf	ک K Kaaf

Complete the following exercises either on a printed paper or in a Word doc. Feel free to copy and paste.

1- Write each alphabet ten times in a row. Remember to write right to left as such:

ا – ا – ا – ا

ب – ب – ب 

پ – پ – پ

2- Match the following to their Dari equivalent:

A                         ب

B                          ج

D                         پ

F                         ف

J/G                       ی

P                           ا

Y/I                         د

 3- Fill in the blank:

ا – ب - .......... – ت – ث - ......... - ج - .......... - چ - .......... - .......... – د - .......... – ر- ........... – ژ - .......... - ........... – ع – .......... – ف - .......... - ........... - ........... – ل - ........... - .......... - .......... – ی - ..........

4- Ask your partner/classmate the following question ten times. Keep score, and see who wins.               

5- Rearrange the letters in bold in correct order:

ا – ب  - س – ت – ث – ظ – چ – ح – گ

د – ذ – ی – ز –ژ - پ – ش – ن – ض

ط  – ج - ف – ق – ک – خ – ل – م – ص – و – ر – ه

Let's Put Them Together

Alef - ا

Let’s use the alphabet to form some nouns, beginning with ا - Alef. 

But, before we start, its important to remember:

1. Alef as the first letter of a word makes the “a” (soft vowel) sound.
2. If Aleft is meant to make the “aa” (hard vowel) sound at the start of a word, it would have to be accompanied by a Mad (a curved dash on top) – .آ
3. When Alef is written in the middle of a word, it makes the “aa’” (hard vowel) sound without Mad or the curved dash.

The following are some examples of Alef’s usage in all three states, marked by 1, 2, or 3 relative to their position in a word:

آدم = Human	آلو = Apricot	آب = Water
ارابه = Wheel	شانه = Comb/Shoulder	بابا = Grandfather
آفتاب = Sun	اشک = Tear	ابرو = Eyebrow
باران = Rain	انار = Pomegranate	احمد = Ahmad

1-      Complete the following words with proper letter:

ان- ر  -- آلوب-لو – آ-تاب  --  با-ان  --  -ب  -- ار-به  --  ابر-  --  آ-م  --  ب- ب-  شان-  

2-      Match English words to their meaning in Dari.

Human                        أب

Pomegranate               انسان

Tire                              ارابه

Grandfather                ابر

Comb                           آفتاب

Sun                              بابا

Cloud                           شانه

Water                          انار

3-      Write the following 10 times each: 

ارابه – 

آفتاب – 

ابر – 

آلوبالو-

انسان –

باران -                                                                                                                                   

  Be – ب

1- When be (ب) is written at the beginning or in the middle of a word, it is cut in half, such as: ب – ا  would make با

2- When it is written at the end of a word, it remains whole.

3- This rule does not apply to the following alphabet: 

ا - د - ذ - ر- ز- ط - ظ - و - ه  

        

Wind	Baad	باد
Brother	Beraadar	برادر
Plate	Beshqaab	بشقاب
Night	Shab	شب

This rule also applies to: 

چ - چاه	ج - جعبه	ث - ثابت	ت - تربوز	پ – پدر
ص - صبر	ش - شب	س - سبز	خ - خواب	ح - حاضر
ق - قلب	ف - فرش	غ - غم	ع - عربی	ض - ضرر
	ی: یک	ن: ناخن	م: مردم	ل: لب

Next: Continue Learning about Noun