just as they used the term "letter" in reference to a noun, saying: "This is a strange letter," meaning the word of the noun is strange. Sībawayh divided speech into noun, verb, and a particle that conveys meaning but is neither a noun nor a verb. Each of these categories is called a letter, but the specific characteristic of the third is that it is a letter conveying meaning that is neither a noun nor a verb. The letters of the alphabet were named with the term "letter," although they are names. The term "letter" encompasses these names and others, as the Prophet (ṣallá Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallam) said: "Whoever recites the Quran and articulates it well will have ten rewards for each letter. I do not say that ﴿Alif Lām Mīm﴾ is a letter, but rather Alif is a letter, Lām is a letter, and Mīm is a letter." Al-Khalīl ibn Aḥmad asked his companions about the pronunciation of the letter Zāy in "Zayd." They said: (Zāy), and he replied: You have given the name, but the letter is (Zā). Then, the grammarians agreed that this term in the language..