Phrase guide

sun letter

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

One of fourteen Arabic letters that cause the "L" of a preceding definite article اَل (al-) to be assimilated in pronunciation. The sun letter suppresses the sound of the "L" and then geminates: al + ṣīn = aṣ-ṣīn. The effect of the sun letter is limited to pronunciation and does not affect the spelling, except that a shadda may be written over the sun letter and in the fully vocalised spelling lām lacks any diacritics: الصِّين (aṣ-ṣīn). The fourteen sun letters are ت (t), ث (ṯ), د (d), ذ (ḏ), ر (r), ز (z), س (s), ش (š), ص (ṣ), ض (ḍ), ط (ṭ), ظ (ẓ), ل (l), ن (n). Phonetically, they represent coronal consonants.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: solar letter

Antonyms: moon letter

History

Etymology

Calque of Arabic حَرْف شَمْسِيّ (ḥarf šamsiyy).

Across languages

Translations

11 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: حُرُوف شَمْسِيَّة (ḥurūf šamsiyya) — sun letter
  • Arabic: حَرْف شَمْسِيّ (ḥarf šamsiyy) — sun letter
  • French: lettre solaire — sun letter
  • German: Sonnenbuchstabe — sun letter
  • Kazakh: күн әрпі (kün ärpı) — sun letter
  • Malay: huruf syamsiah — sun letter
  • Maltese: konsonanti xemxin — sun letter
  • Russian: со́лнечная бу́ква (sólnečnaja búkva) — sun letter
  • Spanish: letra solar — sun letter
  • Ukrainian: сонячна літера (sonjačna litera) — sun letter
  • Ukrainian: сонячна буква (sonjačna bukva) — sun letter