---
title: "The Arabic letter ل (lām): sound, forms and words"
description: "ل (lām) is letter 23 of 28 in the Arabic alphabet: how it sounds, how it is written at the start, middle and end of a word, and Arabic words that begin with it."
canonical: "https://fasaha.app/arabic-alphabet/lam"
language: "en"
direction: "ltr"
---

# The Arabic letter ل (lām): sound, forms and words

ل, called lām, is letter 23 of the 28 in the Arabic alphabet. How it sounds: l. It joins the letter after it, so it has four written forms.

## How ل is written

- Alone: ل
- Start: ل‍
- Middle: ‍ل‍
- End: ‍ل

## Arabic words that begin with ل

From the Fasaha dictionary, easiest first. Each word opens its own page with meaning, root and forms.

- [لِ](https://fasaha.app/w/li) — li, for, to (A0)
- [لُغَة](https://fasaha.app/w/lugha) — lugha, language (A0)
- [لَيْمُون](https://fasaha.app/w/laymun) — laymūn, lemon (A0)
- [لَا](https://fasaha.app/w/la) — lā, no; not (A0)
- [لَيْلَة](https://fasaha.app/w/layla) — layla, night (A1)
- [لَكِنْ](https://fasaha.app/w/lakin) — lākin, but (A1)
- [لِمَنْ](https://fasaha.app/w/liman) — li-man, for whoever (A2)
- [لَهْجَة](https://fasaha.app/w/lahja) — lahja, dialect (B1)

## Questions about ل

### How do you pronounce the Arabic letter ل?

ل (lām) sounds like this: l.

### Does ل join the next letter?

Yes. ل joins the letter after it, so it has separate start, middle and end shapes: ل‍, ‍ل‍, ‍ل.

### What number is ل in the Arabic alphabet?

ل is letter 23 of 28, after ك (kāf) and before م (mīm).

- Previous letter: [ك (kāf)](https://fasaha.app/arabic-alphabet/kaf)
- Next letter: [م (mīm)](https://fasaha.app/arabic-alphabet/mim)

[All 28 letters in the alphabet chart](https://fasaha.app/arabic-alphabet-chart)