ਘ
+
ਰ
Alphabets
The Punjabi alphabet ਪੈਂਤੀ ਅੱਖਰੀ
Meet every letter of Punjabi, hear how it sounds, and learn how letters join to make words.
About Punjabi
Punjabi is spoken by more than 110 million people in India and Pakistan. In India it is written in the Gurmukhi script (ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ), which means "from the mouth of the Guru". Gurmukhi is written from left to right with a line along the top of the letters, like Devanagari, and it is phonetic. Every consonant carries a built-in "a" sound, and small vowel signs called lagan matran (ਲਗਾਂ ਮਾਤਰਾਂ) change that sound. Three extra signs – tippi, bindi and addak – add nasal sounds and double consonants.
- 10
- vowels ਸਵਰ
- 32
- consonants ਵਿਅੰਜਨ
- 6
- dotted letters
- L → R
- writing direction
Vowels ਸਵਰ
Vowels are built on three carrier letters – ੳ for u-sounds, ਅ for a-sounds and ੲ for i-sounds. After a consonant a vowel is written as a vowel sign instead – shown here on ਕ. Tap a letter to hear it.
Three extra signs
Tippi – a nasal "n / m" sound, used with short vowels.
Bindi – makes the vowel nasal, used with long vowels.
Addak – doubles the consonant after it.
Consonants ਵਿਅੰਜਨ
The consonants are arranged by where in the mouth the sound is made. In each of the five middle groups the letters go: plain, breathy, voiced, voiced + breathy (said with a tone in Punjabi), nasal.
Sibilant & h ਸ ਹ
first row of the alphabet, after the vowel carriers
Velar ਕ-ਵਰਗ
from the back of the throat
Palatal ਚ-ਵਰਗ
tongue against the hard palate
Retroflex ਟ-ਵਰਗ
tongue curled back to the roof of the mouth
Dental ਤ-ਵਰਗ
tongue touching the upper teeth
Labial ਪ-ਵਰਗ
with the lips
Last row ਅੰਤਲੀ ਪੰਗਤੀ
semivowels and the flapped ṛa
Dotted letters ਪੈਰ ਬਿੰਦੀ ਵਾਲੇ ਅੱਖਰ
a dot below for sounds from Persian, Arabic and English
The breathy voiced letters ਘ ਝ ਢ ਧ ਭ are said with a tone in Punjabi instead of a breath: ਘਰ (house) is said with a low-rising tone, like "kàr".
How letters join to make words
Punjabi words are built syllable by syllable. Three simple rules cover almost everything.
-
1
Every consonant has a built-in "a"
On its own, ਕ is read ka – this is called mukta.
ਕ +ਅ =ਕ -
2
A vowel sign replaces the "a"
Add a lagan matra to change the vowel: ka becomes kā, ki, ku…
ਕ +◌ਾ =ਕਾ -
3
Addak doubles the next sound
The small curve ੱ (addak) makes the following consonant long.
ਪ +◌ੱ +ਤਾ =ਪੱਤਾ
Where does the vowel sign go?
After
ਕਾ ਕੀ
Written to the right, after the consonant.
Before
ਕਿ
Written first, but said after the consonant.
Below
ਕੁ ਕੂ
Hangs under the consonant.
Above
ਕੇ ਕੈ ਕੋ ਕੌ
Sits on top of the line.
Build real words
ਪ + ◌ਾ
ਪਾ
+
ਣ + ◌ੀ
ਣੀ
ਕ + ◌ਿ
ਕਿ
+
ਤ + ◌ਾ
ਤਾ
+
ਬ
ਫ + ◌ੁ + ◌ੱ
ਫੁੱ
+
ਲ
ਮ + ◌ਾ + ◌ਂ
ਮਾਂ
ਪ + ◌ੰ
ਪੰ
+
ਜ + ◌ਾ
ਜਾ
+
ਬ
ਪ + ◌ਿ
ਪਿ
+
ਆ
+
ਰ
ਸ
+
ਕ + ◌ੂ
ਕੂ
+
ਲ
Good to know
Tippi or bindi?
Use the tippi ੰ after short vowels – ਪੰਜ (five) – and the bindi ਂ after long vowels – ਮਾਂ (mother), ਮੈਂ (I).
Addak changes the meaning
ਪਤਾ (patā) means "address", but ਪੱਤਾ (pattā) means "leaf".
Letters at the foot
A few letters can sit below another one: ਪ੍ਰੀਤ (prīt, love) with a small ਰ, and ਪੜ੍ਹ (paṛh, read) with a small ਹ.
Ready to type in Punjabi?
Use the on-screen keyboard to write these letters, or translate your first sentence.