Learn what the Persian present stem is, its regular patterns, the irregular stems to memor
Present Stem سِتاکِ حال
This stem called “سِتاکِ حال” /setâke hâl/ is used in shaping different forms of verb including Present Continuous and Imperative verbs. The present steam in Farsi is irregular.
| مَصدَر | مَعنی | سِتاکِ حال |
| infinitive | meaning | Present Steam |
| دیدَن | To see | بین |
| گُفتَن | To say | گو |
| نِوِشتَن | To write | نِویس |
| رَفتَن | To go | رو |
| آمَدَن | To come | آی |
Learn what the Persian present stem is, its regular patterns, the irregular stems to memorize, and how it builds the present and imperative.
The present stem of Persian verbs
Every Persian verb has two stems: a past stem and a present stem (in Persian ستاکِ حال, setâk-e hâl, or بنِ مضارع, bon-e mozâre'). The past stem is easy: take the infinitive and drop the final ن (lesson 18). The present stem is the hard one, because for many common verbs it looks quite different from the infinitive. It is worth learning each verb with its present stem from the start.
What the present stem is used for
| Form | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| می + بین + م ← می‌بینم | /mi + bin + am → mibinam/ | simple present: I see |
| ب + بین + م ← ببینم | /be + bin + am → bebinam/ | subjunctive: (that) I see |
| ب + بین ← ببین | /be + bin → bebin/ | imperative: see, look |
| دارم می‌بینم | /dâram mibinam/ | spoken: I am watching (right now) |
| بین + نده ← بیننده | /bin + ande → binande/ | noun: viewer |
Regular patterns
Many verbs follow a pattern you can rely on. Verbs ending in -idan usually just drop -idan: خریدن (kharidan) → خر (khar), "buy"; پرسیدن (porsidan) → پرس (pors), "ask"; خوابیدن (khâbidan) → خواب (khâb), "sleep". Many verbs in -ândan drop -dan: خواندن (khândan) → خوان (khân), "read"; ماندن (mândan) → مان (mân), "stay".
Irregular stems to memorize
| Infinitive → present stem | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| دیدن ← بین | /didan → bin/ | to see |
| گفتن ← گو | /goftan → gu/ | to say |
| نوشتن ← نویس | /neveshtan → nevis/ | to write |
| رفتن ← رو | /raftan → rav/ | to go |
| آمدن ← آ (آی) | /âmadan → â (ây)/ | to come |
| کردن ← کن | /kardan → kon/ | to do, to make |
| شدن ← شو | /shodan → shav/ | to become |
| دادن ← ده | /dâdan → dah/ | to give |
| زدن ← زن | /zadan → zan/ | to hit; used in many compounds |
| خواستن ← خواه | /khâstan → khâh/ | to want |
| گرفتن ← گیر | /gereftan → gir/ | to take, to get |
| نشستن ← نشین | /neshastan → neshin/ | to sit |
| دانستن ← دان | /dânestan → dân/ | to know |
| شناختن ← شناس | /shenâkhtan → shenâs/ | to know (a person) |
| آوردن ← آور | /âvardan → âvar/ | to bring |
The stem آ of آمدن takes a y sound before an ending: می‌آیم (miâyam), "I come"; بیا (biyâ), "come". That is why it is often listed as آی.
Example sentences
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| هر روز تو را می‌بینم. | /har ruz to râ mibinam./ | I see you every day. |
| نامه می‌نویسی؟ | /nâme minevisi?/ | Are you writing a letter? |
| او چه می‌گوید؟ | /u che miguyad?/ | What is he / she saying? |
| کجا می‌روید؟ | /kojâ miravid?/ | Where are you going? |
| می‌خواهم بروم. | /mikhâham beravam./ | I want to go. |
| لطفاً بنشینید. | /lotfan beneshinid./ | Please sit down. |
| فردا می‌آیند. | /fardâ miâyand./ | They're coming tomorrow. |
| بیا اینجا. | /biyâ injâ./ | Come here. |
| او نویسنده است. | /u nevisande ast./ | He / She is a writer. |
Spoken Persian
Several frequent stems are shorter in speech: رو (rav) → r (می‌رم, miram); گو (gu) → g (می‌گم, migam); شو (shav) → sh (می‌شه, mishe); ده (dah) → d (می‌دم, midam); آ → yâ (میام, miyâm). These are normal and correct in conversation but are not written in formal texts.
Common mistakes
- Using the past stem for the present: می‌رفتم means "I used to go"; "I go" is می‌روم.
- Guessing the stem by cutting -tan: the stem of دیدن is بین, not دی.
- Forgetting the y sound with آمدن: می‌آیم, not می‌آم, in writing.
- Learning only infinitives. Always note the pair: نوشتن / نویس.
- Previous: Persian grammar lesson 10
- Next: Persian grammar lesson 12
- The Persian simple present
- The Persian past stem (lesson 18)
Practice
-
What is the present stem of {{کردن}}? کردن
Show answer
kon کن
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What is the present stem of {{خریدن}}? خریدن
Show answer
khar خر
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Form "I say" (written form).
Show answer
miguyam می‌گویم
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Form the imperative "write" from {{نوشتن}}. نوشتن
Show answer
benevis بنویس
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Which verb has the stem {{بین}}? بین
Show answer
didan, "to see" دیدن
See all the lessons in this series on the Persian grammar page.
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