How many letters does Hebrew have?

Twenty-two. Five also have a different shape at the end of a word. That gives learners 27 shapes to recognize, but still 22 letters.

Does Hebrew have capital letters?

No. Hebrew has no upper and lower case. It does have printed letters (dfus) and handwritten letters (ktav), two sets of shapes used for different purposes.

Do I need to learn the alphabet before speaking Hebrew?

No. You can learn to speak first, but reading the alphabet early makes books, stories and most learning materials much easier to use.

Is the Hebrew alphabet the same as the Arabic one?

No. Hebrew and Arabic share a Semitic heritage, and both are written right to left, but their letter shapes are different. Knowing one alphabet does not let you read the other.

Can I learn the Hebrew alphabet on my own?

Yes, but a teacher can correct your pronunciation and help you recognize letters more quickly.

What is the difference between Yiddish, Ladino and Hebrew?

Yiddish and Ladino are languages distinct from Hebrew, even when written in Hebrew letters. Yiddish developed on a Germanic base with important Hebrew, Aramaic and Slavic components; Ladino developed from Spanish. In many diaspora communities, Hebrew was used for prayer, study and writing, including secular writing, while Yiddish or Ladino were everyday spoken languages. The revival of spoken Hebrew began before the State of Israel was established.

The Hebrew alphabet: from creation to punctuation

Updated October 2026

The Hebrew alphabet, or Jewish script, has a long history beyond everyday reading and writing. In Kabbalah, letters also carry spiritual meaning. Gematria, a traditional system of assigning numbers to Hebrew letters, gives readers another way to interpret words and biblical passages.

Hebrew has 22 letters and no capitals. Learners encounter two sets of shapes: dfus (print), used in books, messages and on screens, and ktav (handwriting), used for notes and homework. Here are six things that often feel unfamiliar at first.

Right to left: which way does the notebook open?

Hebrew is read and written from right to left. If your notebook opens the way an English notebook does, turn it over. Numbers within a Hebrew sentence are still written from left to right, while a question mark goes at the end of the sentence.

The 22 letters

Here are the printed letters in order, with their Modern Hebrew sounds and the alternate final shapes where applicable.

Letter	Final	Name	Sound
א		Alef	Can mark a brief closure in the throat (a glottal stop), often not pronounced.
ב		Bet / Vet	“b” with the dot inside, “v” without it.
ג		Gimel	“g” as in go.
ד		Dalet	“d”.
ה		He	“h”, and usually silent at the end of a word.
ו		Vav	“v”, and also the letter written for the vowels “o” and “u”.
ז		Zayin	“z”.
ח		Het	A “ch” from the back of the throat, as in Bach.
ט		Tet	“t”.
י		Yod	“y”, and also the letter written for the vowels “i” and “e”.
כ	ך	Kaf / Khaf	“k” with the dot, the throaty “ch” without it.
ל		Lamed	“l”.
מ	ם	Mem	“m”.
נ	ן	Nun	“n”.
ס		Samekh	“s”.
ע		Ayin	May sound like alef or have no separate consonant sound; some pronunciation traditions retain a deeper throat sound.
פ	ף	Pe / Fe	“p” with the dot, “f” without it.
צ	ץ	Tsadi	“ts”, as at the end of cats.
ק		Qof	“k”.
ר		Resh	Often an “r” made at the back of the mouth, similar to a French or German r; pronunciation varies.
ש		Shin / Sin	“sh” with the dot on the right, “s” with the dot on the left.
ת		Tav	“t”.

Nikud: how dots change what you read

Hebrew has vowel sounds, but ordinary writing usually leaves vowel marks out. The nikud system adds dots and small strokes around letters to show pronunciation. Some letters, especially א, ה, ו and י, can also help indicate vowel sounds.

Children’s books and beginner texts often include nikud. Most messages, news articles and adult books do not, so readers use vocabulary and context to work out the pronunciation. A small mark can change how a whole word is read.

Sofit: five letters with a final form

Five letters change shape at the end of a word: כ becomes ך, מ becomes ם, נ becomes ן, פ becomes ף and צ becomes ץ. These are called otiot sofiot, or final letters.

The final מ (ם) can be mistaken for ס. Handwritten ף and ץ can be tricky too; I remember struggling with them myself.

Print and handwriting

Dfus is not a separate alphabet: it is the printed form of the same Hebrew letters. Ktav is the cursive handwriting form. You can begin with print to read books and type messages, then learn handwriting when you want to write notes or read someone else’s.

לָנוּחַ: why does the a come before ח?

א, ה, ח and ע are traditionally called guttural letters. Their pronunciation varies between speakers and traditions. For example, ע can have a deeper throat sound, sound like א, or have no separate consonant sound.

In לָנוּחַ, the vowel a is pronounced before the final ח even though its mark appears underneath that letter. This is called patach gnuva, or furtive patach. That is why we say lanuach, not lanucha. We can listen and practise together in a lesson.

Familiar words in unfamiliar letters

Modern Hebrew uses many loanwords, called milim loaziyot. A word borrowed from a language you know may still be surprisingly hard to read when it appears in Hebrew letters, especially without nikud. Once you recognize the familiar sound, the word often clicks into place.

Shoresh: the root of a word family

A shoresh is a root that links many Hebrew words. Learning roots helps you notice connections and remember vocabulary. For example, עבודה (work) and עבדות (slavery) share the root ע־ב־ד, though their meanings are different.

Questions people ask

How many letters does Hebrew have?
Twenty-two. Five also have a different shape at the end of a word. That gives learners 27 shapes to recognize, but still 22 letters.
Does Hebrew have capital letters?
No. Hebrew has no upper and lower case. It does have printed letters (dfus) and handwritten letters (ktav), two sets of shapes used for different purposes.
Do I need to learn the alphabet before speaking Hebrew?
No. You can learn to speak first, but reading the alphabet early makes books, stories and most learning materials much easier to use.
Is the Hebrew alphabet the same as the Arabic one?
No. Hebrew and Arabic share a Semitic heritage, and both are written right to left, but their letter shapes are different. Knowing one alphabet does not let you read the other.
Can I learn the Hebrew alphabet on my own?
Yes, but a teacher can correct your pronunciation and help you recognize letters more quickly.
What is the difference between Yiddish, Ladino and Hebrew?
Yiddish and Ladino are languages distinct from Hebrew, even when written in Hebrew letters. Yiddish developed on a Germanic base with important Hebrew, Aramaic and Slavic components; Ladino developed from Spanish. In many diaspora communities, Hebrew was used for prayer, study and writing, including secular writing, while Yiddish or Ladino were everyday spoken languages. The revival of spoken Hebrew began before the State of Israel was established.