<< bet ^ letters ^ >> א ====== Alef ====== Classification: [[formative]], [[gutturals|guttural]], [[matres lectionis|mater lectionis]] [[Sequence]]: 1 / [[Value]]: 1 [[Pictograph]]: The Ox / Bull / Living Animal Also seen as: Aleph, Alif. \\\ {{ :writing:alef-writing.png?nolink&150|}} {{ :proto:proto-alef.svg?nolink&200|}} Learned: [[Lesson 2]] Name: אָלֶף‎ Alef normally represents a **glottal stop**, like the gap in the English word "ut-oh", and is essentially a silent letter. Like all Hebrew consonants, it can carry a vowel with it. For this reason, it is often used as a placeholder consonant at the beginning of words that otherwise start with a vowel sound. ---- [[aspirated]], [[voiceless]], [[mother letters]], [[quiescent]]