The hamza rules everyone forgets

The medial hamza has one governing idea: compare the hamza's own vowel with the vowel before it, and seat the hamza on the letter matching the stronger vowel. The strength order is kasra, then damma, then fatha, then sukun. Kasra pairs with ya, damma with waw, fatha with alif.

Worked examples

• يقرؤون: the hamza carries a damma, preceded by a fatha. Damma is stronger, so the hamza sits on waw. Writing يقرأون is the classic error.
• مسؤول: damma before, sukun on the hamza... the damma wins, waw again.
• سُئل: kasra on the hamza beats the damma before it, so ya wins.

Why professionals still miss it

Because the wrong form often looks familiar: high-frequency errors become invisible. This is exactly the class of mistake a rule engine never tires of: WriteX seats every hamza and, more importantly, tells you the comparison it made, so the rule finally sticks.

Next lesson: the number agreement rules that trip up even careful writers.