Maktab QuranSurah An-Naba opens Juz Amma with the question the Makkans couldn't stop arguing about: 'About what are they asking one another? About the Great News.' Its forty ayahs then answer with sweeping certainty — the earth spread as a bed, mountains as pegs, sleep as rest, the Day of Sorting when the sky opens like doors — before setting Paradise and the Fire side by side.
Surah An-Naba is the 78th chapter of the Qur'an, a Meccan surah of 40 verses that opens Juz 30. Its name means “The Announcement”, and the “great news” it opens with is the Resurrection. The surah answers the people disputing it by pointing to the created world as evidence, then describes the Day of Judgment and what follows it.
Surah An-Naba at a glance
| Surah number | 78 of 114 |
|---|---|
| Arabic name | سُورَةُ النَّبَإِ |
| Name in English | An-Naba — “The Announcement” |
| Verses (ayahs) | 40 |
| Revealed in | Makkah |
| Juz | 30 |
| Length in the Mushaf | about 2 pages |
What the surah is about
The surah opens on a question the Meccans were arguing over — the “great news” of the Resurrection — and answers it. Rather than argue abstractly, it turns to the created world: the earth spread out, the mountains set as pegs, night as covering and day for livelihood, the seven firmaments, the sun, and water pouring from the clouds. The argument is that a Creator who arranged all of this is able to raise the dead.
The Day of Decision
The middle of the surah describes the Day of Decision: the trumpet blown, the sky opened, the mountains moved. It then sets out two outcomes — a description of the punishment of those who denied, and of the gardens, vineyards and cup for those who were mindful of Allah.
How it closes
The surah ends with the Day when the Spirit and the angels stand in rows, none speaking except by permission, and a final warning of a punishment near at hand — closing with the disbeliever wishing he were dust.
Read Surah An-Naba in full
The Arabic below is the Uthmani script, with a Roman transliteration to help you sound out each verse and the Sahih International English translation of the meaning. If you are learning to recite it, read the Arabic line first and use the transliteration only to check yourself — leaning on it slows real reading down.
Listen to Surah An-Naba (Mishary Al-Afasy)
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ
'Amma Yatasaa-aloon
About what are they asking one another?
عَنِ ٱلنَّبَإِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ
'Anin-nabaa-il 'azeem
About the great news -
ٱلَّذِى هُمْ فِيهِ مُخْتَلِفُونَ
Allazi hum feehi mukh talifoon
That over which they are in disagreement.
كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ
Kallaa sa y'alamoon
No! They are going to know.
ثُمَّ كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ
Thumma kallaa sa y'alamoon
Then, no! They are going to know.
أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ ٱلْأَرْضَ مِهَٰدًۭا
Alam naj'alil arda mihaa da
Have We not made the earth a resting place?
وَٱلْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًۭا
Wal jibaala au taada
And the mountains as stakes?
وَخَلَقْنَٰكُمْ أَزْوَٰجًۭا
Wa khalaq naakum azwaaja
And We created you in pairs
وَجَعَلْنَا نَوْمَكُمْ سُبَاتًۭا
Waja'alnan naumakum subata
And made your sleep [a means for] rest
وَجَعَلْنَا ٱلَّيْلَ لِبَاسًۭا
Waja'alnal laila libasa
And made the night as clothing
وَجَعَلْنَا ٱلنَّهَارَ مَعَاشًۭا
Waja'alnan nahara ma 'aasha
And made the day for livelihood
وَبَنَيْنَا فَوْقَكُمْ سَبْعًۭا شِدَادًۭا
Wa banaina fauqakum sab 'an shi daada
And constructed above you seven strong [heavens]
وَجَعَلْنَا سِرَاجًۭا وَهَّاجًۭا
Waja'alna siraajaw wah haaja
And made [therein] a burning lamp
وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلْمُعْصِرَٰتِ مَآءًۭ ثَجَّاجًۭا
Wa anzalna minal m'usiraati maa-an saj-jaaja
And sent down, from the rain clouds, pouring water
لِّنُخْرِجَ بِهِۦ حَبًّۭا وَنَبَاتًۭا
Linukh rija bihee habbaw wana baata
That We may bring forth thereby grain and vegetation
وَجَنَّٰتٍ أَلْفَافًا
Wa jan naatin alfafa
And gardens of entwined growth.
إِنَّ يَوْمَ ٱلْفَصْلِ كَانَ مِيقَٰتًۭا
Inna yaumal-fasli kana miqaata
Indeed, the Day of Judgement is an appointed time -
يَوْمَ يُنفَخُ فِى ٱلصُّورِ فَتَأْتُونَ أَفْوَاجًۭا
Yauma yun fakhu fis-soori fataa toona afwaaja
The Day the Horn is blown and you will come forth in multitudes
وَفُتِحَتِ ٱلسَّمَآءُ فَكَانَتْ أَبْوَٰبًۭا
Wa futiha tis samaa-u fakaanat abwaaba
And the heaven is opened and will become gateways
وَسُيِّرَتِ ٱلْجِبَالُ فَكَانَتْ سَرَابًا
Wa suyyi raatil jibaalu fa kaanat saraaba
And the mountains are removed and will be [but] a mirage.
إِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ كَانَتْ مِرْصَادًۭا
Inna jahan nama kaanat mirsaada
Indeed, Hell has been lying in wait
لِّلطَّٰغِينَ مَـَٔابًۭا
Lit taa gheena ma aaba
For the transgressors, a place of return,
لَّٰبِثِينَ فِيهَآ أَحْقَابًۭا
Laa bitheena feehaa ahqaaba
In which they will remain for ages [unending].
لَّا يَذُوقُونَ فِيهَا بَرْدًۭا وَلَا شَرَابًا
Laa ya zooqoona feeha bar daw walaa sharaaba
They will not taste therein [any] coolness or drink
إِلَّا حَمِيمًۭا وَغَسَّاقًۭا
Illa hamee maw-wa ghas saaqa
Except scalding water and [foul] purulence -
جَزَآءًۭ وِفَاقًا
Jazaa-aw wi faaqa
An appropriate recompense.
إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا۟ لَا يَرْجُونَ حِسَابًۭا
Innahum kaanu laa yarjoona hisaaba
Indeed, they were not expecting an account
وَكَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا كِذَّابًۭا
Wa kazzabu bi aayaa tina kizzaba
And denied Our verses with [emphatic] denial.
وَكُلَّ شَىْءٍ أَحْصَيْنَٰهُ كِتَٰبًۭا
Wa kulla shai-in ahsai naahu kitaa ba
But all things We have enumerated in writing.
فَذُوقُوا۟ فَلَن نَّزِيدَكُمْ إِلَّا عَذَابًا
Fa zooqoo falan-nazee dakum ill-laa azaaba
"So taste [the penalty], and never will We increase you except in torment."
إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ مَفَازًا
Inna lil mutta qeena mafaaza
Indeed, for the righteous is attainment -
حَدَآئِقَ وَأَعْنَٰبًۭا
Hadaa-iqa wa a'anaa ba
Gardens and grapevines
وَكَوَاعِبَ أَتْرَابًۭا
Wa kaawa 'iba at raaba
And full-breasted [companions] of equal age
وَكَأْسًۭا دِهَاقًۭا
Wa ka'san di haaqa
And a full cup.
لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ فِيهَا لَغْوًۭا وَلَا كِذَّٰبًۭا
Laa yasma'oona fiha lagh waw walaa kizzaba
No ill speech will they hear therein or any falsehood -
جَزَآءًۭ مِّن رَّبِّكَ عَطَآءً حِسَابًۭا
Jazaa-am mir-rabbika ataa-an hisaaba
[As] reward from your Lord, [a generous] gift [made due by] account,
رَّبِّ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ۖ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ مِنْهُ خِطَابًۭا
Rabbis samaa waati wal ardi wa maa baina humar rahmaani laa yam likoona minhu khi taaba
[From] the Lord of the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them, the Most Merciful. They possess not from Him [authority for] speech.
يَوْمَ يَقُومُ ٱلرُّوحُ وَٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ صَفًّۭا ۖ لَّا يَتَكَلَّمُونَ إِلَّا مَنْ أَذِنَ لَهُ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنُ وَقَالَ صَوَابًۭا
Yauma yaqoo mur roohu wal malaa-ikatu saf-fal laa yata kalla moona illa man azina lahur rahmaanu wa qaala sawaaba
The Day that the Spirit and the angels will stand in rows, they will not speak except for one whom the Most Merciful permits, and he will say what is correct.
ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْيَوْمُ ٱلْحَقُّ ۖ فَمَن شَآءَ ٱتَّخَذَ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِۦ مَـَٔابًا
Zaalikal yaumul haqqu faman shaa-at ta khaaza ill-laa rabbihi ma-aaba
That is the True Day; so he who wills may take to his Lord a [way of] return.
إِنَّآ أَنذَرْنَٰكُمْ عَذَابًۭا قَرِيبًۭا يَوْمَ يَنظُرُ ٱلْمَرْءُ مَا قَدَّمَتْ يَدَاهُ وَيَقُولُ ٱلْكَافِرُ يَٰلَيْتَنِى كُنتُ تُرَٰبًۢا
In naa anzar naakum azaaban qareebaiy-yauma yan zurul marr-u maa qaddamat yadaahu wa ya qoolul-kaafiru yaa lai tanee kuntu turaaba
Indeed, We have warned you of a near punishment on the Day when a man will observe what his hands have put forth and the disbeliever will say, "Oh, I wish that I were dust!"
Learning Surah An-Naba
An-Naba is one of the most commonly memorised surahs after Juz Amma's shortest chapters, because its verses are short, its rhythm is strongly regular and its rhyme endings repeat. Most students meet it early in Juz 30.
Why memorize Surah An-Naba?
Because it's the gateway to the memorizer's juz. An-Naba is where the classic back-to-front Juz 30 progression begins for students moving past the short surahs — finish it and the rest of Juz Amma follows a well-worn path.
How long does Surah An-Naba take to memorize?
Honest answer: it depends on your daily portion and whether someone is correcting you. Surah An-Naba is about 28 lines of mushaf text. Here is what that means at three realistic paces — each assuming you also run the revision cycle (which is what makes it permanent):
| Pace | New memorization per day | Time to finish Surah An-Naba | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Relaxed | ~3 lines | about 10 days | Busy adults, first-time memorizers |
| Steady | ~5 lines | about 6 days | Most students — the sweet spot |
| Focused | ~10 lines | about 3 days | Experienced memorizers, school holidays |
Add roughly a consolidation week at the end — the point where you can recite the whole surah to a listener without prompts. Our guide to how long the whole Quran takes uses the same arithmetic.
The smart way to memorize Surah An-Naba
Memorize it in its four scenes: the question and the answer from creation (1–16), the Day of Sorting (17–30), the reward of the righteous (31–36), and the Day the Spirit stands in rows (37–40). The creation passage is a list of paired favours — night/day, sleep/waking, sun/rain — that chains easily once you see the pairs. Most ayahs are just a few words; momentum builds fast, so guard against racing ahead of your revision.
A milestone plan for Surah An-Naba
At the steady pace (~5 lines a day), Surah An-Naba breaks into four milestones. Print our free planner PDF and mark them off:
| Portion | New-memorization time | Cumulative | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milestone 1 | Ayahs 1–10 | ~2 days | Day 2 |
| Milestone 2 | Ayahs 11–20 | ~2 days | Day 4 |
| Milestone 3 | Ayahs 21–30 | ~2 days | Day 6 |
| Milestone 4 | Ayahs 31–40 | ~2 days | Day 8 |
Use the system huffadh actually use
Every hifz institute on earth runs some version of the same engine: new lesson (sabaq), near revision (sabqi), far revision (manzil). New memorization is the easy part — the system exists to stop last month's pages dissolving while you learn this month's. It's the backbone of our structured Hifz course, and you can run it yourself with the free planner PDF.
The correction problem (and its solution)
Apps and audio can help you repeat — but they can't hear you. Memorizing alone means locking in whatever you happen to be saying, right or wrong, and un-learning a settled mistake takes longer than learning it right the first time. Our teachers listen to every ayah live on a synchronized Quran screen, fix each slip in real time, and keep your sabaq–sabqi–manzil cycle honest. Try it in a free trial lesson — no card required.