Reference
Diacritics (harakat), numbers & script notes
What are diacritics?
Persian is normally written without short vowel marks — readers infer vowels from context. Diacritics (harakat / اعراب) are small marks placed above or below letters to indicate exact pronunciation. They appear in the Qur'an, children's books, dictionaries, and wherever precise reading is required. Knowing them helps you decode any fully-voweled Persian or Arabic text.
Short vowel marks (harakat)
Persian / Farsi numerals
Persian uses Eastern Arabic numerals (۰–۹), distinct from Western Arabic (0–9). They are written left-to-right like Western numbers. Dates, prices, and page numbers in Persian text all use these forms. The shapes differ slightly from Arabic numerals — compare ۴ (four) and ۶ (six) especially.
Script notes
Direction: Persian is written right-to-left. Only numbers and foreign words embedded in Persian text run left-to-right.
Cursive: Letters connect to their neighbours in almost all cases. Non-connecting letters (ا، د، ذ، ر، ز، ژ، و) only connect to the letter on their right.
No capital letters: Persian has no upper/lower case distinction.
Hamza (ء): A glottal stop mark, can appear on its own or on a carrier letter (أ، إ، ؤ، ئ). In modern Persian its use is simplified compared to Arabic.
Alef variants: آ (alef with madda, /â/) is a very common initial vowel. اَ (alef with fatha) and اِ (alef with kasra) appear in fully voweled text.
Basic Grammar
Essential Persian grammar for beginners
1. Word Order
Persian uses Subject – Object – Verb (SOV) order, the opposite of English.
The verb always comes at the end of the sentence.
من کتاب میخوانم
man ketâb mikhânam
I (subject) book (object) read (verb) — "I read a book"
علی آب خورد
Ali âb khord
Ali water drank — "Ali drank water"
2. No Grammatical Gender
Persian has no grammatical gender — there is no he/she distinction. The single pronoun او (u) covers both he and she. Nouns do not change based on gender.
| Persian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|
| او | u | he / she / it |
| آنها | ân-hâ | they |
| ما | mâ | we |
| شما | shomâ | you (formal / plural) |
| تو | to | you (informal) |
| من | man | I |
3. The Indefinite Suffix ی (-i)
Persian has no indefinite article like "a" or "an". Instead, the suffix ی (-i) is added to the noun. It is often omitted in informal speech.
4. The Ezafe Construction ِ (-e / -ye)
The ezafe (اضافه) is a short vowel sound -e (or -ye after a vowel) that links a noun to its modifier — adjective, possessive, or another noun. It is usually not written in everyday text but is always pronounced.
| Persian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|
| کتاب خوب | ketâb-e khub | a good book |
| خانهی من | khâne-ye man | my house |
| پسر دوستم | pesar-e dustam | my friend's son |
5. Plurals
The most common plural suffix is ها (-hâ), added to any noun. The Arabic suffix ان (-ân) is used for people and animate beings, especially in formal or written Persian.
| Singular | Plural (-hâ) | Meaning |
|---|
| کتاب | کتابها | books |
| خانه | خانهها | houses |
| دوست | دوستان / دوستها | friends |
| مرد | مردان / مردها | men |
6. The Present Tense
Persian verbs are formed from a stem + personal endings. The present tense uses the present stem plus the prefix می (mi-). The infinitive always ends in ن (-an).
Example: رفتن (raftan — to go) → present stem: رو (ro)
| Pronoun | Persian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|
| من (I) | میروم | miram | I go |
| تو (you) | میروی | miravi | you go |
| او (he/she) | میرود | miravad | he/she goes |
| ما (we) | میرویم | miravim | we go |
| شما (you pl.) | میروید | miravid | you go |
| آنها (they) | میروند | miravand | they go |
7. The Verb "To Be" بودن
The present tense of بودن (budan — to be) uses short suffixes that can be attached to the subject or used as standalone words. In informal speech the full forms are often shortened.
| Pronoun | Full form | Attached suffix | Example |
|---|
| من | هستم | -am | خوبم (I am well) |
| تو | هستی | -i | کجایی؟ (Where are you?) |
| او | است / هست | -ast/-e | اینجاست (he/she is here) |
| ما | هستیم | -im | خوبیم (we are well) |
| شما | هستید | -id | کجایید؟ (Where are you?) |
| آنها | هستند | -and | اینجا هستند (they are here) |
8. Negation
Verbs are negated by adding the prefix نمی (nemi-) in the present tense, or ن (na-) in the past tense and imperative. The negative prefix always comes immediately before the verb stem.
9. Questions
Yes/no questions are formed by adding the particle آیا (âyâ) at the start of a sentence — or simply by raising your intonation. Question words come before the verb.
| Persian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|
| چی / چه | chi / che | what |
| کی | ki | who / when |
| کجا | kojâ | where |
| چرا | cherâ | why |
| چطور | chetour | how |
| چند | chand | how many |
کجا میروی؟
kojâ miravi?
Where are you going?
10. Common Phrases
| Persian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|
| سلام | salâm | Hello |
| خداحافظ | khodâhâfez | Goodbye |
| ممنون / متشکرم | mamnun / motashakkeram | Thank you |
| خواهش میکنم | khâhesh mikonam | Please / You're welcome |
| بله / نه | bale / na | Yes / No |
| ببخشید | bebakhshid | Excuse me / Sorry |
| اسم شما چیست؟ | esme shomâ chist? | What is your name? |
| اسم من … است | esme man … ast | My name is … |
| حال شما چطور است؟ | hâle shomâ chetour ast? | How are you? |
| خوبم، ممنون | khubam, mamnun | I'm well, thank you |
11. The Past Tense
The simple past is formed from the past stem (infinitive minus ن) plus personal endings. There is no auxiliary verb — the ending alone signals person and number.
Example: رفتن (raftan — to go) → past stem: رفت (raft)
| Pronoun | Persian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|
| من | رفتم | raftam | I went |
| تو | رفتی | rafti | you went |
| او | رفت | raft | he/she went |
| ما | رفتیم | raftim | we went |
| شما | رفتید | raftid | you went |
| آنها | رفتند | raftand | they went |
12. Adjectives & Comparison
Adjectives follow the noun via the ezafe construction. The comparative is formed by adding تر (-tar) and the superlative by adding ترین (-tarin) to the adjective.
| Base | Comparative | Superlative | Meaning |
|---|
| بزرگ | بزرگتر | بزرگترین | big / bigger / biggest |
| خوب | بهتر | بهترین | good / better / best |
| بد | بدتر | بدترین | bad / worse / worst |
| سریع | سریعتر | سریعترین | fast / faster / fastest |
این کتاب بهتر است
in ketâb behtar ast
This book is better
13. Prepositions & Postpositions
Persian uses prepositions (before the noun) for most spatial relationships. A few common ones:
| Persian | Transliteration | Meaning | Example |
|---|
| در | dar | in / at | در خانه (at home) |
| به | be | to / towards | به مدرسه (to school) |
| از | az | from / of | از ایران (from Iran) |
| با | bâ | with | با دوستم (with my friend) |
| برای | barâye | for | برای تو (for you) |
| روی | ruye | on top of | روی میز (on the table) |
14. Numbers in Sentences
In Persian, nouns after a number stay in the singular form — there is no plural agreement with numerals. The numeral comes before the noun.
سه کتاب
se ketâb
three book(s) — not سه کتابها