پ (pe) is the 3rd letter of the Persian alphabet. It is pronounced p, as in “pen”, as in پدر (pedar, father).
How to write پ (pe)
Persian is written from right to left, and most letters change shape depending on where they sit in a word. These are the four forms of پ:
| On its own | Start of a word | Middle | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| پ | پـ | ـپـ | ـپ |
پ joins the letter that comes after it.
How to pronounce پ (pe)
Like English p in "pen": close both lips and release, with a light puff of air.
Persian words with پ
| Persian | Pronunciation | English | Where پ is |
|---|---|---|---|
| پدر | pedar | father | start |
| پنج | panj | five | start |
| پول | pul | money | start |
| سپاس | sepâs | thanks | middle |
| تپه | tappe | hill | middle |
| شامپو | shâmpu | shampoo | middle |
| چپ | chap | left | end |
| توپ | tup | ball | end |
Good to know
- پ is ب with three dots below instead of one.
- پ is one of four letters (پ چ ژ گ) added to the Arabic script for Persian sounds; Arabic has no پ, so you will not find it in Arabic loanwords.
Quiz: the letter پ
Check yourself on پ (pe): 7 quick questions with instant answers.
1. Which sound does پ (pe) make?
2. Which word starts with پ?
3. What does پنج (panj) mean?
4. Does پ join the letter that comes after it?
5. What is the name of the letter پ?
6. Where is پ in the word سپاس (sepâs, thanks)?
7. What is the position of پ in the 32-letter Persian alphabet?
Answer key with explanations
- B. p: پ is pronounced p. Like English p in “pen”: close both lips and release, with a light puff of air.
- B. پدر (pedar): پدر (pedar) means “father” and begins with پ.
- D. five: پنج (panj) means “five”.
- D. Yes, it joins the next letter: پ joins the next letter, so it has four forms.
- D. pe: پ is called pe.
- A. In the middle: In سپاس, پ comes in the middle, so it uses its middle form.
- A. 3rd: پ is the 3rd letter: ا ب پ ت ث ج چ ح خ د ذ ر ز ژ س ش ص ض ط ظ ع غ ف ق ک گ ل م ن و ه ی
Common questions
How do you pronounce پ in Persian?
پ (pe) is pronounced p. Like English p in “pen”: close both lips and release, with a light puff of air.
Does پ connect to the next letter?
Yes. پ joins the letter after it, so it has four forms: on its own, at the start, in the middle and at the end of a word.
Does Arabic have the letter پ?
No. پ was added for Persian, along with چ, ژ and گ, so Arabic speakers learning Persian also have to learn it.
The Farsi alphabet (Farsi: /alefbâye fârsi/ الفبای فارسی) consists 32 letters, most of which have two forms, short and full. In Farsi, words are written from right to left while numbers are written from left to right. Farsi is a writing style based on the Arabic script. It is entirely written cursively. That is, the majority of letters in a word connect to each other. Therefore, the appearance of a letter changes depending on its position: beginning (joined on the left), middle (joined on both sides), end (joined on the right) of a word and some letters are written isolated.
This writing style is also implemented on computers. Whenever the Farsi script is typed, the computer connects the letters to each other.
Following is a table showing the Farsi alphabet and how it is pronounced in English. There are also some examples of how those letters would sound if you place them in a word.
| ح | چ | ج | ث | ت | پ | ب | الف |
| ش | س | ژ | ز | ر | ذ | د | خ |
| ق | ف | غ | ع | ظ | ط | ض | ص |
| ی | ه | و | ن | م | ل | گ | ک |
پ – پـ
“پـ – پ” /pe/ is the third letter of the Persian alphabet. It sounds /pe/ like “p” in “pen”. “پ” has two forms. “پـ” is the short form; therefore, it takes the initial or medial positions in a Persian word. “پ” is the full form. Therefore, it comes only at the end of the words.
How to write it:
Sample Words:
 |
پا |
| پاپ |
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Get the 14-page printable Starter Pack (all 32 letters, a 7-day reading plan, 100 core words and 20 survival phrases) and a short 5-email course. Free.