Read a short beginner Persian story about dinner at a restaurant, with sentence-by-sentence translation, key words and a quiz.
Reading: dinner at a restaurant
Study notes for this lesson. This short text tells the story of Amir and Shirin's dinner in standard written Persian, in the present tense. It uses the same words and restaurant verbs as the other pages of this lesson.
Before you read, try to predict the story: two friends, a menu, an order, a meal and a bill. Read once without looking at the English column, underline every verb you recognize, and then check your understanding sentence by sentence. On a second reading, say each sentence aloud.
Reading text
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| امروز جمعه است و امیر و شیرین شام را در رستوران می‌خورند. | /emruz jom'e ast va amir va shirin shâm râ dar resturân mikhorand./ | Today is Friday, and Amir and Shirin are having dinner at a restaurant. |
| رستوران کوچک است، اما غذاهایش خیلی خوشمزه است. | /resturân kuchak ast, ammâ ghazâhâyash kheyli khoshmaze ast./ | The restaurant is small, but its food is very tasty. |
| گارسون منو را می‌آورد. | /gârson meno râ miâvarad./ | The waiter brings the menu. |
| امیر چلوکباب سفارش می‌دهد. | /amir chelo kabâb sefâresh midahad./ | Amir orders chelo kebab. |
| شیرین گوشت نمی‌خورد، برای همین جوجه‌کباب و سالاد می‌خواهد. | /shirin gusht nemikhorad, barâye hamin juje-kabâb va sâlâd mikhâhad./ | Shirin doesn't eat red meat, so she wants chicken kebab and salad. |
| آن‌ها دو دوغ و یک بطری آب هم سفارش می‌دهند. | /ânhâ do dugh va yek botri âb ham sefâresh midahand./ | They also order two doughs and a bottle of water. |
| غذا زود می‌رسد. | /ghazâ zud miresad./ | The food arrives quickly. |
| امیر می‌گوید: «کباب خیلی خوب است.» | /amir miguyad: "kabâb kheyli khub ast."/ | Amir says, "The kebab is very good." |
| بعد از شام، آن‌ها چای می‌خورند. | /ba'd az shâm, ânhâ chây mikhorand./ | After dinner, they drink tea. |
| در آخر امیر صورت‌حساب را می‌خواهد و پول را می‌دهد. | /dar âkhar amir surat-hesâb râ mikhâhad va pul râ midahad./ | At the end, Amir asks for the bill and pays. |
Key words
- جمعه (jom'e): Friday, the weekend day in Iran
- غذاهایش (ghazâhâyash): its food (plural with a possessive suffix)
- برای همین (barâye hamin): that's why, so
- زود (zud): quickly, early
- رسیدن (residan): to arrive; present stem رس (res)
- گفتن (goftan): to say; present stem گو (gu)
- در آخر (dar âkhar): in the end, finally
- پول دادن (pul dâdan): to pay, literally "to give money"
The same story in spoken Persian
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| گارسون منو رو میاره. | /gârson meno ro miyâre./ | The waiter brings the menu. |
| امیر چلوکباب سفارش می‌ده. | /amir chelo kabâb sefâresh mide./ | Amir orders chelo kebab. |
| شیرین گوشت نمی‌خوره. | /shirin gusht nemikhore./ | Shirin doesn't eat red meat. |
| بعد از شام چای می‌خورن. | /ba'd az shâm chây mikhoran./ | After dinner they drink tea. |
In speech را (râ) becomes رو (ro) or just و (-o) after a consonant, and the third-person endings ـد and ـند become -e and -an.
Grammar in the text
- Every verb is present indicative. Several use the irregular stems from the Grammar page: می‌آورد (âvar), سفارش می‌دهد (dah), می‌خواهد (khâh).
- را (râ) marks a definite direct object: منو را می‌آورد, "brings the menu". With an indefinite object there is no را: چای می‌خورند, "they drink tea".
- The subject آن‌ها takes the ending ـند: می‌خورند, سفارش می‌دهند.
- غذا with a plural ending and a suffix becomes غذاهایش, following the rule from Lesson 7.
Writing task: describe your last meal at a restaurant or cafe in five present-tense sentences. Say where you go, who goes with you, what each person orders, and what you drink after the meal.
Other parts of Lesson 9
Practice
-
What day is it in the story?
Show answer
Friday (jom'e). جمعه
-
What does Amir order?
Show answer
Chelo kebab. چلوکباب
-
Why does Shirin order chicken kebab?
Show answer
Because she doesn't eat red meat. گوشت نمی‌خورد.
-
What do they have after dinner?
Show answer
Tea. چای
-
Who pays the bill?
Show answer
Amir. امیر
Previous lesson: Lesson 8: Reading. Next lesson: Lesson 10: New Words.
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