All lessons › Reading unit 3

Vowels · The Invisible Ink

Long vowels you see, short vowels you guess

Urdu writes long vowels with real letters (ا و ی ے) but marks short vowels with tiny optional symbols, which everyday writing simply leaves out. Readers infer them from context, like how you can read 'txt msgs wtht vwls'.

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Good to know

✨ The dotless ں (nūn ghunna) is the nasal hum at the end of hāṉ, nahīṉ, maiṉ. It only appears at word-ends, inside words, regular nūn goes nasal undercover.

✨ Aspiration changes meaning: pal (moment) vs phal (fruit). That little ھ is doing real work. English speakers aspirate automatically in 'pin' but not 'spin', so you already make both sounds!

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