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Tajweed Colour Guide

In the 16-line Quran and the 15-line Madani Mushaf, letters are coloured to show three Tajweed rules: red for Ghunnah, green for heavy letters (Tafkheem) and blue for Qalqalah. Colour-coded Mushafs from different publishers use different colours, so this guide explains the colours used on TajweediQuran.

The colour key

The same key is printed at the bottom of every page of both Mushafs:

The colours follow the project's written Tajweed rule specification, which a Tajweed teacher reviewed and approved. Letters without a colour are read as normal.

Each example below is shown from both Mushafs, each in its own script and spelling, exactly as its pages colour it. Both follow the same rules; where they show a word differently, the reason is under 16-line and 15-line.

Red: Ghunnah (غُنّة)

Ghunnah is a nasal sound, held for about two counts, that resonates through the nose. Red marks the Noon (ن) and Meem (م) sounds that carry it:

  • النَّاسِ
    16-line · page 548
    ٱلنَّاسِ
    15-line · page 604

    Noon or Meem with a shaddah (نّ مّ).

    Surah An-Naas, ayah 1: 16-line · 15-line

  • لَهَبٍ وَّتَبَّ
    16-line · page 547
    لَهَبࣲ وَتَبَّ
    15-line · page 603

    Idgham with Ghunnah: a Noon Sakin or Tanween at the end of a word, followed by ي ن م or و at the start of the next word. The two merge with a nasal sound, and both letters are red.

    Surah Al-Masad, ayah 1: 16-line · 15-line

  • يُنْفِقُوْنَ
    16-line · page 2
    يُنفِقُونَ
    15-line · page 2

    Ikhfa: a Noon Sakin or Tanween followed by one of 15 letters (ت ث ج د ذ ز س ش ص ض ط ظ ف ق ك). The Noon is hidden and read with Ghunnah.

    Surah Al-Baqarah, ayah 3: 16-line · 15-line

  • مِنْۢ بَعْدِ
    16-line · page 5
    مِنۢ بَعْدِ
    15-line · page 5

    Iqlab: a Noon Sakin or Tanween followed by ب. It turns into a Meem sound with Ghunnah; the small Meem written above shows where.

    Surah Al-Baqarah, ayah 27: 16-line · 15-line

  • لَهُمْ مَّشَوْا
    16-line · page 4
    لَهُم مَّشَوْا۟
    15-line · page 4

    Idgham Shafawi: a Meem Sakin followed by another Meem. The two merge with Ghunnah.

    Surah Al-Baqarah, ayah 20: 16-line · 15-line

  • تَرْمِيْهِمْ بِحِجَارَةٍ
    16-line · page 546
    تَرْمِيهِم بِحِجَارَةࣲ
    15-line · page 601

    Ikhfa Shafawi: a Meem Sakin followed by ب. The Meem is read with Ghunnah, the lips almost closed.

    Surah Al-Feel, ayah 4: 16-line · 15-line

Not red: a Noon Sakin or Tanween before a throat letter (ء ه ع ح غ خ) is read clearly (Izhar), and a Meem Sakin before any letter other than م or ب is read clearly too (Izhar Shafawi).

Green: Tafkheem (تفخيم)

Tafkheem means reading a letter full and heavy, with the back of the tongue raised towards the roof of the mouth. Green marks:

  • الْمَغْضُوْبِ
    16-line · page 1
    ٱلْمَغْضُوبِ
    15-line · page 1

    The seven heavy letters خ ص ض ط ظ غ ق, which are always heavy.

    Surah Al-Fatiha, ayah 7: 16-line · 15-line

  • رَبِّ
    16-line · page 1
    رَبِّ
    15-line · page 1

    Raa (ر) when it is heavy: with a fathah or dhammah, or with a sukun after a fathah or dhammah.

    Surah Al-Fatiha, ayah 2: 16-line · 15-line

  • رِسَالَتَهٗؕ
    16-line · page 107
    رِسَالَتَهُۥۚ
    15-line · page 119

    Raa with a kasrah is light, so it stays uncoloured.

    Surah Al-Maidah, ayah 67: 16-line · 15-line

  • نَصْرُ اللّٰهِ
    16-line · page 547
    نَصْرُ ٱللَّهِ
    15-line · page 603

    The Laam in the Name of Allah (الله), when the letter before it has a fathah or dhammah, or when reading starts from the Name.

    Surah An-Nasr, ayah 1: 16-line · 15-line

  • لِلّٰهِ
    16-line · page 1
    لِلَّهِ
    15-line · page 1

    After a kasrah the Laam of Allah is light, so it stays uncoloured.

    Surah Al-Fatiha, ayah 2: 16-line · 15-line

Blue: Qalqalah (قلقلة)

Qalqalah is a slight echo or bounce as the letter is released. It belongs to five letters, ق ط ب ج د(remembered as قطب جد). Blue marks:

  • يَجْعَلْ
    16-line · page 546
    يَجْعَلْ
    15-line · page 601

    A Qalqalah letter with a sukun.

    Surah Al-Feel, ayah 2: 16-line · 15-line

  • اَحَدٌ
    16-line · page 547
    أَحَدٌ
    15-line · page 604

    A Qalqalah letter at the end of an ayah, where the reader stops and the letter becomes silent. The echo is stronger here.

    Surah Al-Ikhlas, ayah 1: 16-line · 15-line

  • رَيْبَۚۖۛ
    16-line · page 2
    رَيْبَۛ
    15-line · page 2

    At an optional stop sign inside an ayah, the letter is not coloured, as in the printed colour-coded Indo-Pak Mushaf: the echo applies only if you choose to stop there. Here the final ب stays uncoloured.

    Surah Al-Baqarah, ayah 2: 16-line · 15-line

ق and ط have both qualities: they are heavy letters and Qalqalah letters. When they carry a sukun they are coloured blue for Qalqalah; otherwise they are green. At the end of an ayah the two Mushafs differ: see below.

16-line and 15-line

The two Mushafs use the same three colours and the same key. Their colours are worked out separately, each from its own text, because the Indo-Pak and Madani scripts spell some words differently. The 15-line Mushaf also colours a stop at the end of an ayah as it is read, which shows in three places. How each Mushaf's colours are made and reviewed: About.

  • كُفُوًا اَحَدٌ
    16-line · page 547
    كُفُوًا أَحَدُۢ
    15-line · page 604

    The last vowel on a stop. When you stop, the final vowel or Tanween is not pronounced. The 16-line Mushaf colours it with its letter; the 15-line Mushaf colours the letter only.

    Surah Al-Ikhlas, ayah 4: 16-line · 15-line

  • الْفَلَقِ
    16-line · page 548
    ٱلْفَلَقِ
    15-line · page 604

    ق or ط at the end of an ayah. On a stop it is read with the strongest Qalqalah. The 15-line Mushaf colours it blue for that echo; the 16-line Mushaf keeps it green for its heaviness.

    Surah Al-Falaq, ayah 1: 16-line · 15-line

  • مَّرَضٌۙ فَزَادَهُمُ
    16-line · page 3
    مَّرَضࣱ فَزَادَهُمُ
    15-line · page 3

    A heavy letter carrying a hidden Tanween. Both rules apply: the letter is heavy, and its Tanween is hidden with Ghunnah. The 15-line Mushaf shows both, the letter green and the Tanween red; the 16-line Mushaf shows the letter green.

    Surah Al-Baqarah, ayah 10: 16-line · 15-line

Colours in the reader

  • Open Settings to turn all the colours off, or to switch off one rule at a time. Reading in plain ink and then turning the colours back on is a good way to check yourself.
  • The colour key at the bottom of the page shows only the rules that are switched on.
  • In dark mode the same three colours are drawn brighter, so they stay easy to see.
  • The magnifier and the enlarged word under the pointer keep the colours, in both Mushafs. See the annotation tools guide.

More on the switches: Settings guide. Start reading: 16-line Quran with colour Tajweed or the 15-line Madani Mushaf.