What is a Bengali conjunct?

A conjunct (যুক্তাক্ষর, juktakkhor) is a ligature formed when two or more consonants meet with no vowel between them. The hasanta (virama, ্) suppresses the inherent vowel of the first consonant so the next attaches directly, often producing a fused shape.

How is a conjunct typed in Unicode?

You type the first consonant, then the hasanta (U+09CD ্), then the second consonant. The font's shaping engine renders the fused ligature automatically. For example ক + ্ + ত produces ক্ত (kta).

Why do some conjuncts look nothing like their parts?

Many Bengali conjuncts are fully fused ligatures rather than stacked letters. ক্ষ (kṣa) and জ্ঞ (jña) are classic examples — their visual form gives little hint of the ক+ষ and জ+ঞ that compose them, so they must be learned.

What is the ya-phala and ra-phala?

When য (ya) is the second member it becomes a subscript called ya-phala (্য), and র (ra) as a second member becomes ra-phala (্র), a small hook below. These two are extremely common in Bengali spelling.

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Bengali Conjunct Consonant Reference

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In Bengali script, when two consonants meet with no vowel between them they fuse into a conjunct (যুক্তাক্ষর, juktakkhor). The fusion is driven by the hasanta (virama, ্), which suppresses the inherent ô vowel of the first consonant. Some conjuncts simply stack their parts, but many — like ক্ষ and জ্ঞ — form fully blended ligatures whose shape must be memorised. This reference lists the most common clusters with their component letters, pronunciation, and an example word.

How it works

At the Unicode level a conjunct is encoded as: first consonant + hasanta (U+09CD) + second consonant. The font’s shaping engine then draws the fused form. For instance:

ক (ka) + ্ (hasanta) + ত (ta) → ক্ত (kta)
স (sa) + ্ + ত (ta)           → স্ত (sta)

Two productive second-members get special subscript shapes:

ya-phala (্য): য as a second member, e.g. ব্য (bya).
ra-phala (্র): র as a second member, drawn as a hook below, e.g. প্র (pra).

Example and tips

The word বিদ্যা (biddā/bidya, “knowledge”) contains the conjunct দ্য (d + ya-phala). The opaque ligatures ক্ষ (as in পরীক্ষা, “exam”) and জ্ঞ (as in জ্ঞান, “knowledge”) are worth learning by sight because you cannot read them off their component letters. Search the table by component, romanisation, or example word, and click any conjunct to copy it.