One of the most problematic topics in the history of the Qur’an is “al-ahruf alsab‘ a”. Various opinions are given on this topic; it is due mainly to a lack of sufficient examples regarding the nature of it. This paper aims to do two things: first to analyze major opinions on the topic and second to firmly argue for the view that al-ahruf al-sab‘a is the way of reciting the words of the Qur’an by simply and unintentionally changing them with their synonyms. The emergence of al-ahruf al-sab‘a, it is argued, was the result of the fact that the first Muslim society, who were in urgent need of learning the Qur’an and the principles of Islam for their daily prayer and daily life, spoke Arabic in different dialects and its culture mainly depended on memory due to low literacy.