Madd Rules in Tajweed: The Types of Madd Explained

The Madd rules in Tajweed tell you which vowel sounds to stretch and for how long. Every madd starts with one of three madd letters. If nothing special follows that letter, you hold it for 2 counts. If a hamzah or a sukoon comes after it, the madd becomes a secondary type and can be stretched to 4, 5 or 6 counts depending on the rule.

This guide follows the recitation of Hafs 'an 'Asim by the route of the Shatibiyyah, which is what most Mushafs and most teachers use. If you are completely new to Tajweed, start with our Tajweed rules for beginners guide, which gives a short overview of every topic.

What Does Madd Mean?

Madd literally means "to stretch" or "to extend." In Tajweed, it means lengthening the sound of a madd letter beyond its normal short vowel. Lengths are measured in counts, called harakat. One count is roughly the time it takes to say one short vowel at your normal reading pace. What matters is that your counts stay even.

The Three Madd Letters and Their Conditions

A letter only becomes a madd letter when two conditions are met: it has a sukoon (or no vowel mark), and the letter before it carries the matching short vowel.

• Alif (ا): always silent, and the letter before it has a fatha. Example: قَالَ (qaala).
• Waw (و): with sukoon, and the letter before it has a damma. Example: يَقُولُ (yaqoolu).
• Ya (ي): with sukoon, and the letter before it has a kasra. Example: قِيلَ (qeela).

If waw or ya has a sukoon but the letter before it has a fatha, as in خَوْف or بَيْت, it is not a full madd letter. It is a leen letter, which has its own rule below.

The Original Madd: Madd Tabi'i (2 Counts)

Madd Tabi'i, also called Madd Asli (the original or natural madd), is a madd letter that is not followed by a hamzah or a sukoon. It is held for exactly 2 counts, no more and no less.

Example: نُوحِيهَا (noo-hee-haa) in Surah Hud 11:49 contains three natural madds in one word, each held for 2 counts.

Every other madd is called Madd Far'i, a secondary madd. It becomes longer because of a cause: a hamzah or a sukoon.

Madds Caused by Hamzah

Madd Muttasil Wajib (4 or 5 counts)

Muttasil means "connected." This is a madd letter followed by a hamzah in the same word. It is called wajib (obligatory) because all reciters lengthen it beyond 2 counts. In Hafs by the Shatibiyyah, it is held for 4 or 5 counts. If you stop on a word that ends in a muttasil, it may be stretched to 6.

Examples: إِذَا جَاءَ نَصْرُ اللَّهِ (idhaa jaa-a nasrullah), Surah An-Nasr 110:1, and وَالسَّمَاءِ ذَاتِ الْبُرُوجِ (was-samaa-i dhaatil-burooj), Surah Al-Buruj 85:1.

Madd Munfasil Ja'iz (4 or 5 counts)

Munfasil means "separated." This is a madd letter at the end of one word followed by a hamzah at the start of the next word. It is called ja'iz (permissible) because reciters differ on its length. In Hafs by the Shatibiyyah, it is held for 4 or 5 counts. Through the Tayyibah routes of Hafs it may also be read with 2 counts, but beginners usually stay with the Shatibiyyah lengths.

Examples: إِنَّا أَعْطَيْنَاكَ الْكَوْثَرَ (innaa a'tainaakal-kawthar), Surah Al-Kawthar 108:1, and بِمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ (bimaa unzila ilaika), Surah Al-Baqarah 2:4.

Tip: choose one length and keep it. Many teachers recommend 4 counts for both Muttasil and Munfasil, and the Munfasil should never be longer than the Muttasil in the same recitation.

Madd Badal (2 counts)

Badal means "substitute." It happens when a hamzah comes before the madd letter. In Hafs it is held for 2 counts, just like a natural madd.

Examples: الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا (alladheena aamanoo), which appears many times, such as Surah Al-Baqarah 2:9, and فَزَادَهُمْ إِيمَانًا (fazaadahum eemaanaa), Surah Aal 'Imran 3:173.

Madds Caused by Sukoon

Madd Lazim (6 counts)

Lazim means "necessary." This is a madd letter followed by a permanent sukoon, one that is there whether you stop or continue. It is always held for 6 counts. It has four kinds:

1. Kalimi Muthaqqal (heavy, in a word): the madd letter is followed by a letter with a shaddah. Example: وَلَا الضَّالِّينَ (wa lad-daaalleen), Surah Al-Fatihah 1:7, and الْحَاقَّةُ (al-haaaqqah), Surah Al-Haqqah 69:1.
2. Kalimi Mukhaffaf (light, in a word): the madd letter is followed by a plain sukoon with no shaddah. In Hafs this only occurs in آلْآنَ (aaal-aana), which appears twice, in Surah Yunus 10:51 and 10:91. It is read with 6 counts when the second hamzah is changed into a madd, and a second valid way, with a softened hamzah, is learned with a teacher.
3. Harfi Muthaqqal (heavy, in a letter): found in the disjointed letters at the start of some Surahs. The letter's name has three letters with a madd in the middle, and its last letter merges into the next. Example: the laam in الٓمٓ (alif laaam meeem), Surah Al-Baqarah 2:1, where the meem at the end of "laam" merges into the next "meem."
4. Harfi Mukhaffaf (light, in a letter): the same kind of letter, but with no merging. Example: the final meem of الٓمٓ (2:1), ق (qaaaf) in Surah Qaf 50:1, and ن (nooon) in Surah Al-Qalam 68:1.

The disjointed letters that take a 6-count madd are gathered in the phrase نَقَصَ عَسَلُكُمْ. The letter 'ayn in كٓهيعٓصٓ (19:1) and حمٓ عٓسٓقٓ (42:1-2) is a special case read with 4 or 6 counts. Letters whose names have only two sounds, such as ha and ra in طه and الٓر, take just 2 counts.

Madd 'Arid lis-Sukun (2, 4 or 6 counts)

'Arid means "temporary." This is a madd letter followed by a letter that only becomes silent because you stop on it. While reading continuously it is a natural 2-count madd. When you stop, you may hold it for 2, 4 or 6 counts.

Examples: stopping on الْعَالَمِينَ as al-'aalameen (1:2), on الرَّحِيمِ as ar-raheem (1:3), and on نَسْتَعِينُ as nasta'een (1:5). Whichever length you choose, keep it the same at every stop in that recitation.

Madd Leen (2, 4 or 6 counts)

Leen means "soft." It happens with a waw or ya that has a sukoon after a fatha, when you stop on the letter after it. In continuous reading there is no stretch at all. When stopping, it can be held for 2, 4 or 6 counts.

Examples: رَبَّ هَٰذَا الْبَيْتِ stopped as al-bait (Surah Quraysh 106:3), and مِّنْ خَوْفٍ stopped as khawf (106:4).

Other Madds You Will Meet

Madd 'Iwad (2 counts)

'Iwad means "compensation." When you stop on a word that ends in tanween with a fatha (ـً), the tanween is dropped and replaced with an alif held for 2 counts. This does not apply to a word ending in taa marbutah (ة), which is stopped with a ha sound.

Example: يَدْخُلُونَ فِي دِينِ اللَّهِ أَفْوَاجًا, stopped as afwaajaa, Surah An-Nasr 110:2.

Madd Silah (Sughra and Kubra)

Silah means "connection." It applies to the ha of the pronoun meaning "him" or "his" (هُ or هِ) when it sits between two voweled letters. The short vowel on the ha is stretched into a small waw or ya, which many Mushafs print as a small letter.

• Silah Sughra (minor), 2 counts: when the next letter is not a hamzah. Example: إِنَّ رَبَّهُ كَانَ بِهِ بَصِيرًا (inna rabbahoo kaana bihee baseeraa), Surah Al-Inshiqaq 84:15.
• Silah Kubra (major), 4 or 5 counts: when the next letter is a hamzah, so it is treated like Madd Munfasil. Example: يَحْسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُ أَخْلَدَهُ (yahsabu anna maalahoo akhladah), Surah Al-Humazah 104:3.

Hafs has a few well-known exceptions, such as فِيهِ مُهَانًا (25:69), which is stretched even though a sukoon comes before the ha, and يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ (39:7), which is read short. A teacher will point these out as you reach them.

Summary Table: Types of Madd and Their Counts

Type of Madd	Cause	Counts (Hafs, Shatibiyyah)	Example
Tabi'i (Asli)	No hamzah or sukoon after	2	قَالَ
Muttasil Wajib	Hamzah after, same word	4 or 5 (6 when stopping on it)	جَاءَ (110:1)
Munfasil Ja'iz	Hamzah after, next word	4 or 5	إِنَّا أَعْطَيْنَاكَ (108:1)
Badal	Hamzah before the madd	2	آمَنُوا
Lazim (all four kinds)	Permanent sukoon or shaddah after	6	الضَّالِّينَ (1:7), الٓمٓ (2:1)
'Arid lis-Sukun	Sukoon from stopping	2, 4 or 6	نَسْتَعِينْ (1:5)
Leen	Waw or ya sakinah after fatha, when stopping	2, 4 or 6	الْبَيْتْ (106:3)
'Iwad	Stopping on tanween with fatha	2	أَفْوَاجَا (110:2)
Silah Sughra	Pronoun ha, no hamzah after	2	رَبَّهُ كَانَ (84:15)
Silah Kubra	Pronoun ha, hamzah after	4 or 5	مَالَهُ أَخْلَدَهُ (104:3)

How to Practice the Madd Rules

1. Master the 2-count madd first. Every other length is measured against it, so make it steady before anything else.
2. Learn by cause. Is there a hamzah after the madd letter, a sukoon, or nothing? That tells you which family applies.
3. Practice in Al-Fatihah and the short Surahs. They contain most types of madd.
4. Recite to a teacher. A teacher can hear rushed or overstretched counts that you may miss.

Learn the Madd Rules One-on-One

Reading about madd is a good start, but counts are learned by ear and corrected in real time. In our online Tajweed classes, every lesson is live and one-on-one, so your teacher listens to each madd you recite and helps you fix it on the spot. If you are an adult returning to the Quran or starting fresh, our online Quran classes for adults move at a pace that suits your schedule. You can see plan options on our pricing page.

Not sure where to begin? Try a lesson first and read a short passage for a teacher. They will tell you which madd rules you already apply well and which ones need attention, then suggest a plan inside our Tajweed course. When you are ready, book a free 30-minute trial class and start stretching every letter the right way.