Conditional Sentences in Persian: How to Use Agar (If) with Every Tense

To make a conditional in Persian, start the “if” clause with اگر (agar), or اگه (age) in everyday speech. For a real future condition, use the present subjunctive after agar and the present tense in the result: اگر فردا باران ببارد، در خانه می‌مانیم. (agar fardâ bârân bebârad, dar khâne mimânim), “If it rains tomorrow, we’ll stay home.” For unreal conditions, put both verbs in the past: اگر می‌دانستم، می‌گفتم. (agar midânestam, migoftam), “If I knew, I’d tell you.”

That is the core of it. The rest is choosing the right verb form for each kind of “if,” and Persian has a few habits English does not: it uses the simple past for some future conditions, it uses one past form for both “if I knew” and “if I had known,” and it never puts the future tense after agar. Below you will find each pattern with a table, the negative, words like unless, otherwise and even if, the spoken forms Iranians actually use, the most common learner mistakes, and practice with answers.

Persian conditionals at a glance

English textbooks number conditionals (zero, first, second, third). Persian grammar does not, and the numbering does not map neatly onto Persian anyway. It is easier to ask two questions: is the condition possible or imaginary? and is it about now/the future or about the past? This table covers every pattern in this post.

If you need a refresher on any of these verb forms, see how to conjugate Persian verbs and the guide to the Persian past tense, which covers the past continuous and past perfect used here.

The word for “if”: agar and age

The standard word is اگر (agar) Listen. In conversation almost everyone says اگه (age) Listen. You will see agar in books, news and formal messages, and age in texts between friends, films and songs. There is a short vocabulary entry on the word itself in Agar, the Persian word for “if”.

A few things about how agar sits in a sentence:

• No word for “then.” The result clause simply follows, usually after a comma: اگر بخواهی، کمکت می‌کنم. (agar bekhâhi, komakat mikonam), “If you want, I’ll help you.”
• Either clause can come first. کمکت می‌کنم اگر بخواهی. is also fine, though starting with agar is more common.
• Agar can follow the subject. Persian often puts the topic first: من اگر جای تو بودم… (man agar jâ-ye to budam…), “Me, if I were you…” This is very natural in speech.
• The verb stays at the end of each clause, as in any Persian sentence.

Real conditions: things that can happen

Agar + present subjunctive (the most common pattern)

When the condition is possible and refers to the future, or to things that happen in general, use the present subjunctive after agar. It is built with be- + present stem + personal ending: بروم (beravam), بیایی (biâyi), ببارد (bebârad). Compound verbs with kardan usually drop be- (کار کنم kâr konam, گرم کنی garm koni), while many others keep it (زنگ بزنی zang bezani). You can review the forms in the lesson on the Persian present subjunctive and the comparison of indicative vs subjunctive.

The result clause is usually the ordinary present tense with mi-, which in Persian also covers the future. You can also use an imperative, or the formal future with خواهم (khâham).

Listen: اگر بیایی Listen and the spoken اگه بیای (age biây) Listen.

With budan (to be), the subjunctive is باشم، باشی، باشد، باشیم، باشید، باشند (bâsham, bâshi, bâshad, bâshim, bâshid, bâshand): اگر مریض باشی، باید استراحت کنی. (agar mariz bâshi, bâyad esterâhat koni), “If you’re sick, you should rest.” For a full overview of budan, see to be in Persian.

Agar + present: when the condition is a fact right now

If the condition describes something you already know or assume is true at this moment, Persian uses the normal present tense, not the subjunctive. It works like English “if you’re hungry” said to someone who looks hungry.

• اگر گرسنه‌ای، غذا هست. (agar gorosne-i, ghazâ hast), “If you’re hungry, there’s food.”
• اگر سؤال داری، بپرس. (agar so’âl dâri, bepors), “If you have a question, ask.”
• اگر فارسی بلدی، کمکم کن. (agar fârsi baladi, komakam kon), “If you know Persian, help me.”

This is also how Persian handles dâshtan (to have) in most real conditions: اگر وقت داری (agar vaght dâri) Listen is far more common than the subjunctive اگر وقت داشته باشی (agar vaght dâshte bâshi), although both are correct.

Agar + simple past: “if (and when) this happens”

This is the pattern English speakers find strangest. Persian often uses the simple past after agar for a future event, especially when the result should follow once the condition is complete. It is very common in instructions and requests.

• اگر او را دیدی، سلام مرا برسان. (agar u râ didi, salâm-e marâ beresân), “If you see him, say hello for me.” Spoken: اگه دیدیش، سلام برسون. (age didish, salâm beresun) Listen
• اگر رسیدی، به من پیام بده. (agar residi, be man payâm bedeh), “If (when) you get there, text me.”
• اگر تصمیمت را گرفتی، خبرم کن. (agar tasmimat râ gerefti, khabaram kon), “If you make up your mind, let me know.”

The meaning is close to English “if you’ve seen him” or “once you get there.” The subjunctive version (اگر او را ببینی) is also correct and means the same thing; the past form just sounds a little more concrete and is very frequent in speech.

Agar + past subjunctive: “if it has already happened”

To talk about something that may or may not have happened already, use the past subjunctive: past participle + باشم، باشی، باشد….

• اگر نامه را خوانده باشد، همه چیز را می‌داند. (agar nâme râ khânde bâshad, hame chiz râ midânad), “If she has read the letter, she knows everything.”
• اگر رسیده باشند، الان در هتل‌اند. (agar reside bâshand, alân dar hotel-and), “If they have arrived, they’re at the hotel now.”

Unreal conditions in the present: “If I were you…”

For imaginary situations (things that are not true now, or are very unlikely), Persian moves both verbs into the past, just as English uses “were” and “would”:

• In the if-clause, use the past continuous (mi- + past stem): زندگی می‌کردم (zendegi mikardam), می‌دانستم (midânestam). The verbs budan and dâshtan use the simple past instead: بودم (budam), داشتم (dâshtam).
• In the result clause, use the past continuous: می‌خریدم (mikharidam), می‌رفتیم (miraftim). This is the Persian “would.”

The phrase Iranians use all the time for advice is اگر جای تو بودم (agar jâ-ye to budam) Listen, “if I were you,” spoken اگه جای تو بودم، بهش زنگ می‌زدم (age jâ-ye to budam, behesh zang mizadam). And اگر پول داشتم Listen is the classic daydream opener.

Unreal conditions in the past: “If I had known…”

For a past that did not happen (regrets, missed chances), Persian has two options for the if-clause.

Option 1: past continuous in both clauses

اگر می‌دانستم، می‌گفتم. (agar midânestam, migoftam) Listen. Spoken: اگه می‌دونستم، می‌گفتم. (age midunestam, migoftam).

Notice that this is exactly the same form as the present unreal pattern. The sentence can mean “If I knew, I would tell you” or “If I had known, I would have told you.” Persian speakers rely on context, or add a time word such as دیروز (diruz, yesterday) or آن موقع (ân moghe’, at that time) to make the past meaning clear.

Option 2: past perfect in the if-clause

To make it unmistakably past, put the if-clause in the past perfect (past participle + بودم، بودی، بود…) and keep the result in the past continuous.

Listen: اگر درس خوانده بودم Listen. Spoken Persian uses the same structure with spoken verb forms: اگه زودتر اومده بودی، می‌دیدیش. (age zudtar umade budi, mididish).

Negative conditions: “if … not”

Negation works as it does everywhere in Persian: add na- (or ne- before mi-) to the verb. In the subjunctive, na- replaces be-, it does not sit next to it.

• اگر عجله نکنی، به قطار نمی‌رسی. (agar ‘ajale nakoni, be ghatâr nemirasi), “If you don’t hurry, you’ll miss the train.”
• اگر ترافیک نبود، زودتر می‌رسیدیم. (agar terâfik nabud, zudtar miresidim), “If there were no traffic, we’d get there sooner.” (or “If there hadn’t been traffic, we’d have arrived sooner”)

Agar na: on its own, اگر نه (agar na), spoken اگه نه (age na), means “if not”: می‌آیی؟ اگر نه، من تنها می‌روم. (miâyi? agar na, man tanhâ miravam), “Are you coming? If not, I’ll go alone.”

Unless, otherwise, even if: other conditional words

Persian has a set of words that do the work of English unless, otherwise and as long as. Most of them, like agar, take the subjunctive when the condition is about the future.

Examples:

• فردا می‌آیم، مگر اینکه باران ببارد. (fardâ miâyam, magar inke bârân bebârad), “I’ll come tomorrow, unless it rains.” Listen
• زود بخواب، وگرنه صبح خسته‌ای. (zud bekhâb, vagarna sobh khaste-i), “Go to bed early, or else you’ll be tired in the morning.” Listen
• حتی اگر دیر شود، منتظرت می‌مانم. (hattâ agar dir shavad, montazeret mimânam), “Even if it gets late, I’ll wait for you.”
• کمکت می‌کنم، به شرطی که تو هم کمکم کنی. (komakat mikonam, be sharti ke to ham komakam koni), “I’ll help you, as long as you help me too.”
• چنانچه سؤالی دارید، با ما تماس بگیرید. (chenânche so’âli dârid, bâ mâ tamâs begirid), “Should you have any questions, please contact us.”

Wishes with kâsh. کاش (kâsh) follows the same logic as agar. A possible wish takes the subjunctive: کاش بیاید. (kâsh biâyad), “I hope he comes / If only he would come.” An unreal wish takes the past: کاش اینجا بودی. (kâsh injâ budi) Listen, “I wish you were here,” and کاش می‌دانستم. (kâsh midânestam), “I wish I knew / had known.”

When English “if” is not agar

English uses “if” for two different things. Only one of them is agar.

• “If” meaning “whether” is not agar. Persian uses a plain question with یا نه (yâ na, or not) at the end: نمی‌دانم می‌آید یا نه. (nemidânam miâyad yâ na), “I don’t know if he’s coming.” In formal writing you may also see آیا (âyâ): نمی‌دانم آیا می‌آید یا نه. More on questions in Persian question words.
• “What if…?” in speech is اگه … چی؟ (age … chi?): اگه بارون بیاد چی؟ (age bârun biâd chi?) Listen, “What if it rains?”
• “When” for something sure to happen is وقتی (vaghti) or وقتی که (vaghti ke), not agar: وقتی رسیدم، زنگ می‌زنم. (vaghti residam, zang mizanam), “When I get there, I’ll call.”

Spoken Persian: how conditionals sound in real life

The grammar of spoken conditionals is the same as written Persian. What changes is the pronunciation of the words, so it helps to recognize both versions.

Two everyday sentences to say out loud: اگه بخوای، می‌آم دنبالت. (age bekhây, miâm donbâlet), “If you want, I’ll come pick you up,” and اگه وقت داری، بیا یه چایی بخوریم. (age vaght dâri, biâ ye châyi bokhorim), “If you have time, come have a cup of tea with me.” Listen

Common mistakes with Persian conditionals

1. Using the future tense after agar. Persian does not do this. Not اگر فردا خواهی آمد but اگر فردا بیایی (agar fardâ biâyi). The future tense with khâham can appear in the result, never in the if-clause. See the Persian future tense for where it does belong.
2. Using the simple past for an imaginary present. اگر اینجا زندگی کردم does not mean “if I lived here.” For most verbs you need the past continuous: اگر اینجا زندگی می‌کردم (agar injâ zendegi mikardam). Only budan and dâshtan use the simple past: اگر اینجا بودم.
3. Translating “would” with khâstan. می‌خواستم بخرم means “I wanted to buy.” “I would buy” is simply می‌خریدم (mikharidam).
4. Using agar for “whether.” نمی‌دانم اگر می‌آید is wrong. Say نمی‌دانم می‌آید یا نه.
5. Keeping be- in the negative. The negative of بیایی is نیایی (nayâyi), and of بروی is نروی (naravi). Na- takes the place of be-.
6. Confusing agarche and agar. اگرچه (agarche) means “although”: اگرچه خسته بودم، رفتم. (agarche khaste budam, raftam), “Although I was tired, I went.”

For more grammar practice, try the Persian grammar quiz, and use the Persian verb conjugator to look up the subjunctive and past continuous of any verb you want to use in an if-sentence. The intermediate book Farsi Grammar in Use: For Intermediate Students covers the subjunctive and conditionals with more exercises.

Common questions

How do you say “if” in Persian?

“If” is اگر (agar) in standard Persian and اگه (age) in everyday speech. It starts the condition clause, and the result clause follows without any word for “then”: اگر بخواهی، می‌آیم. (agar bekhâhi, miâyam), “If you want, I’ll come.”

What tense comes after agar in Persian?

It depends on the meaning. For a possible future, use the present subjunctive (اگر بیایی). For a fact accepted now, the present (اگر خسته‌ای). For imaginary situations, the past continuous, or budam and dâshtam (اگر پول داشتم). For a past that did not happen, the past continuous or past perfect (اگر آمده بودی). The future tense never follows agar.

How do you say “If I were you” in Persian?

اگر جای تو بودم (agar jâ-ye to budam), literally “if I were in your place,” followed by a past continuous verb: اگر جای تو بودم، صبر می‌کردم. (agar jâ-ye to budam, sabr mikardam), “If I were you, I’d wait.” Polite: اگر جای شما بودم (agar jâ-ye shomâ budam).

How do you say “unless” and “otherwise” in Persian?

“Unless” is مگر اینکه (magar inke), spoken مگه اینکه (mage inke), followed by the subjunctive. “Otherwise” is وگرنه (vagarna): بدو، وگرنه به اتوبوس نمی‌رسیم. (bedo, vagarna be otobus nemirasim), “Run, otherwise we’ll miss the bus.”

Is “age” correct Persian?

Yes. اگه (age) is the normal spoken form of اگر (agar) and is what most Iranians say in conversation, text messages and on social media. In formal writing, use agar.

What is the difference between agar and agarche?

اگر (agar) means “if.” اگرچه (agarche) means “although” and introduces a fact, not a condition: اگرچه باران می‌آمد، بیرون رفتیم. (agarche bârân miâmad, birun raftim), “Although it was raining, we went out.”

Learn Persian with our bestseller

Study with the book

Learn Farsi in 100 Days: The Ultimate Crash Course to Learning Farsi Fast

PDF ebook, instant download. $26.99 Original price was: $26.99.$14.99Current price is: $14.99.

Add to cart See inside

Serious about Persian? Get all 30 of our Persian learning books for $199.99 (55% less than buying them one by one).

Browse all Persian learning books