A complete guide to the Persian simple present: mi- + present stem + ending, negatives with nemi-, uses, spoken forms and common mistakes.
The simple present tense in Persian
The simple present (in Persian مضارع اخباری, mozâre'-e ekhbâri) is the tense you will use most. One form covers several English tenses: می‌روم (miravam) can mean "I go", "I am going" or "I will go", depending on context. If you know the present stem of a verb and the six personal endings, you can form it for almost any verb.
How it is formed
The formula is: می (mi-) + present stem + personal ending. The prefix is written with a half-space. Here is رفتن (raftan), "to go", with the present stem رو (rav):
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| من می‌روم | /man miravam/ | I go / I'm going |
| تو می‌روی | /to miravi/ | you go |
| او می‌رود | /u miravad/ | he / she goes |
| ما می‌رویم | /mâ miravim/ | we go |
| شما می‌روید | /shomâ miravid/ | you (pl.) go |
| آن‌ها می‌روند | /ânhâ miravand/ | they go |
The negative
For the negative, replace می with نمی (nemi-): نمی‌روم (nemiravam), "I don't go"; نمی‌دانم (nemidânam), "I don't know". The stress falls on nemi-.
Present stems you need
The present stem is often irregular, so learn it together with the infinitive.
| Infinitive → stem | Pronunciation | Meaning and “I” form |
|---|---|---|
| خوردن ← خور | /khordan → khor/ | to eat → mikhoram |
| دیدن ← بین | /didan → bin/ | to see → mibinam |
| گفتن ← گو | /goftan → gu/ | to say → miguyam |
| آمدن ← آ | /âmadan → â/ | to come → miâyam |
| کردن ← کن | /kardan → kon/ | to do → mikonam |
| خواندن ← خوان | /khândan → khân/ | to read → mikhânam |
| نوشتن ← نویس | /neveshtan → nevis/ | to write → minevisam |
| دانستن ← دان | /dânestan → dân/ | to know → midânam |
When to use the simple present
- Habits and facts: هر روز قهوه می‌خورم (har ruz ghahve mikhoram), "I drink coffee every day".
- Actions happening now: چه کار می‌کنی؟ (che kâr mikoni?), "What are you doing?"
- Plans and the near future: فردا به شیراز می‌رویم (fardâ be shirâz miravim), "We're going to Shiraz tomorrow".
- Offers and promises: من کمکت می‌کنم (man komakat mikonam), "I'll help you".
Example sentences
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| من فارسی یاد می‌گیرم. | /man fârsi yâd migiram./ | I'm learning Persian. |
| تو کجا زندگی می‌کنی؟ | /to kojâ zendegi mikoni?/ | Where do you live? |
| او هر روز روزنامه می‌خواند. | /u har ruz ruznâme mikhânad./ | He / She reads the newspaper every day. |
| ما شب‌ها تلویزیون نمی‌بینیم. | /mâ shab-hâ televiziyon nemibinim./ | We don't watch TV at night. |
| شما چای می‌خورید؟ | /shomâ chây mikhorid?/ | Would you like tea? (lit. do you drink tea?) |
| آن‌ها فردا می‌آیند. | /ânhâ fardâ miâyand./ | They're coming tomorrow. |
| نمی‌دانم. | /nemidânam./ | I don't know. |
| قطار ساعت هشت حرکت می‌کند. | /ghatâr sâ'at-e hasht harekat mikonad./ | The train leaves at eight. |
| او خیلی خوب آشپزی می‌کند. | /u kheyli khub âshpazi mikonad./ | He / She cooks very well. |
Exceptions
- داشتن (dâshtan), "to have", has no می: دارم (dâram).
- بودن (budan), "to be", uses هستم (hastam) or the short endings: خوبم (khubam), "I'm fine".
- In compound verbs, می goes on the verb part only: کار می‌کنم (kâr mikonam), "I work".
Spoken Persian
In Tehran speech the endings -ad, -id, -and become -e, -in, -an, and many stems shrink: می‌رم (miram), "I go"; میام (miyâm), "I come"; می‌گه (mige), "he / she says"; می‌شه (mishe), "it becomes, it's possible". To stress that something is happening right now, speakers add داشتن: دارم غذا می‌خورم (dâram ghazâ mikhoram), "I'm eating (right now)".
Common mistakes
- Using the past stem: می‌رفتم is "I used to go", not "I go".
- Putting می on the noun of a compound verb: say زندگی می‌کنم, not می‌زندگی کنم.
- Negating with نه: نه می‌روم is wrong; use نمی‌روم.
- Forgetting the half-space and writing می as a separate word in formal text.
- Persian present verb endings (lesson 3)
- Present tense of "to be" (lesson 7)
- Persian present stem (lesson 11)
- Persian grammar lessons
Practice
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Form the simple present "I write" from {{نوشتن}} (stem {{نویس}}). نوشتن / نویس
Show answer
minevisam می‌نویسم
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Make negative: {{او قهوه می‌خورد.}} او قهوه می‌خورد.
Show answer
u ghahve nemikhorad. او قهوه نمی‌خورد.
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Translate: "We are going home."
Show answer
mâ be khâne miravim. ما به خانه می‌رویم.
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Why is {{می‌دارم}} wrong for "I have"? می‌دارم
Show answer
Dâshtan does not take mi- in the simple present; say dâram. دارم
-
What is the spoken form of {{می‌روند}} (miravand)? می‌روند
Show answer
miran می‌رن
See all the lessons in this series on the Persian grammar page.
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