Practicing the Letter आ (ā)

First, try to read a few sentences with the first form of आ (ā).

Note that in the first sentence, the ā sound in what and starting was not replaced because, since they are not at the beginning of the words, they use the mātrā of आ (ā). Also notice that apples, while starting with an English a, does not start with the ā sound.

Now try some sentences with ा (ā), the mātrā of आ (ā).

We won't use ा (ā) the mātrā of आ (ā) very much in our example sentences that use English letters, because it is too easy to confuse it with the English letter T. In addition, if your browser indicates the position of a missing Devanagari consonant by displaying a dotted circle, its difficult to tell how the letter would appear in the middle of a Hindi word. Instead, let's start practicing with nothing but Devanagari letters. In the sentences below, English words have been transliterated using the Devanagari script.

First, try to remember which letters are indicated, and then decide which sounds they make. Put them together into a word, and see if you recognize which English word is being indicated. Don't forget how the vowel आ (ā) and its mātrā ा (ā) work. And remember that these words in the Devanagari script are not letter-for-letter reproductions of English words; rather, their sounds should reflect the English words that are indicated.