The technical descriptions are taken from the Journal of the International Phonetic Association. Robin Thelwall and M. Akram Saʿdeddin. “Arabic.” Journal of the International Phonetic Association 20.2 (1990): 37–39.
The vowels are noted: a, u, i. When they are long: ā, ū, ī.
ʾ = hamza, phoneme associated with the vowels a, i, u |
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b |
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t |
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th = pronounced like the English th in path |
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j |
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ḥ |
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kh = pronounced like the Spanish jota |
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d |
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dh = voiced interdental fricative, like the English th in this |
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r |
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z |
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s |
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sh = identical to the sh sound in English |
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ṣ = emphatic pharyngealized s, similar but not identical to the English saw |
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= emphatic pharyngealized d, no English equivalent |
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ṭ = emphatic pharyngealized t, no English equivalent |
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ẓ = emphatic phrayngealized voiced dental fricative, no English equivalent |
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ʿ = voiced pharyngeal fricative, no English equivalent |
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gh = voiced velar-uvular fricative, like the French r |
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f |
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q |
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k |
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l |
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m |
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n |
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h = analogous to the English h in habit |
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w = like water |
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y = like yes |