A beginner review of Persian greetings and introductions: hello, how are you, your name and where you are from, with a dialogue and a quiz.
Beginner review: greetings and introductions
This page is a review lesson for the "Persian For Beginners: A Complete Course" series. It brings together the first things every learner needs: saying hello, asking how someone is, giving your name and saying where you are from. Read the dialogue aloud, learn the phrase tables and then try the quiz.
Dialogue: meeting a new classmate
| Speaker | Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leila | سلام، صبح بخیر. | /salâm, sobh bekheyr./ | Hello, good morning. |
| David | سلام، صبح شما هم بخیر. حال شما چطور است؟ | /salâm, sobh-e shomâ ham bekheyr. hâl-e shomâ chetor ast?/ | Hello, good morning to you too. How are you? |
| Leila | خوبم، ممنون. شما چطورید؟ | /khubam, mamnun. shomâ chetorid?/ | I'm fine, thanks. How are you? |
| David | من هم خوبم. اسم من دیوید است. | /man ham khubam. esm-e man deyvid ast./ | I'm fine too. My name is David. |
| Leila | خوشوقتم. من لیلا هستم. شما اهل کجا هستید؟ | /khoshvaghtam. man leylâ hastam. shomâ ahl-e kojâ hastid?/ | Nice to meet you. I'm Leila. Where are you from? |
| David | من اهل کانادا هستم. | /man ahl-e kânâdâ hastam./ | I'm from Canada. |
| Leila | خوش آمدید. خداحافظ. | /khosh âmadid. khodâhâfez./ | Welcome. Goodbye. |
Greetings for different times of day
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| سلام | /salâm/ | hello (any time) |
| صبح بخیر | /sobh bekheyr/ | good morning |
| عصر بخیر | /asr bekheyr/ | good afternoon / good evening |
| شب بخیر | /shab bekheyr/ | good night (when leaving or going to bed) |
| خداحافظ | /khodâhâfez/ | goodbye |
| به امید دیدار | /be omid-e didâr/ | see you again (formal) |
How are you?
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| حال شما چطور است؟ | /hâl-e shomâ chetor ast?/ | How are you? (polite, written) |
| حالتون چطوره؟ | /hâletun chetore?/ | How are you? (polite, spoken) |
| چطوری؟ | /chetori?/ | How are you? (informal) |
| خوبم، ممنون. | /khubam, mamnun./ | I'm fine, thanks. |
| بد نیستم. | /bad nistam./ | I'm not bad. |
| شما چطورید؟ | /shomâ chetorid?/ | And how are you? |
Grammar note: the verb "to be"
In these introductions you use the present tense of "to be" in two forms. The full form, هستم (hastam), "I am", is common after names and places: من لیلا هستم, "I'm Leila". The short form is a suffix: خوبم (khubam), "I'm fine", is خوب (khub) plus -am. For "he, she, it is" the written form is است (ast), which in speech becomes -e: چطور است becomes چطوره (chetore).
Also notice the ezâfe, the linking sound -e, in اسمِ من (esm-e man), "my name", and اهلِ کجا (ahl-e kojâ), "from where". It is not usually written, but you must say it.
More than one "how are you"
Iranian greetings are often longer than English ones. After سلام and حالتون چطوره؟, people commonly ask about the family: خانواده خوبن؟ (khânevâde khuban?), "Is the family well?" A typical reply is سلام می‌رسونن (salâm mirasunan), "They send their regards". Do not be surprised if a short meeting starts with several of these questions in a row; answering each one briefly with خوبن، ممنون (khuban, mamnun), "they're fine, thanks", is enough.
- ممنون (mamnun) and مرسی (merci) both mean "thanks" in everyday speech; متشکرم (motashakkeram) is more formal.
- خوش آمدید (khosh âmadid) means "welcome"; the reply is ممنون.
- ببخشید (bebakhshid) means "excuse me" or "sorry" and is the polite way to start a question to a stranger.
Polite and informal
Use شما (shomâ), the polite "you", with people you have just met, with older people and in shops and offices. Use تو (to) with friends and family. When in doubt, choose شما: it is never rude.
- Persian For Beginners: A Complete Course
- Page 8: numbers and time
- Khodâhâfez: the Persian word for goodbye
Practice
-
How do you say "good morning"?
Show answer
sobh bekheyr صبح بخیر
-
Ask politely: "How are you?" (spoken)
Show answer
hâletun chetore? حالتون چطوره؟
-
Say "I'm from Canada."
Show answer
man ahl-e kânâdâ hastam. من اهل کانادا هستم.
-
What does this mean? خوشوقتم
Show answer
Nice to meet you.
-
Which "you" should you use with a stranger?
Show answer
shomâ, the polite form شما
Back to the course: Persian For Beginners: A Complete Course.
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