Study notes for lesson 2 speaking: a short Persian dialogue where Ali and Maryam meet, useful greeting phrases, a role-play and a quiz.
Speaking practice: meeting someone in Persian
Study notes for this lesson. On this page you practice greetings out loud. The dialogue is an original example in everyday spoken Persian, the way people talk in Tehran: Ali and Maryam meet on the first day of their Persian class, and then their teacher, Mrs. Karimi, arrives. Read each line aloud, first slowly and then at normal speed.
Dialogue
| Speaker | Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ali | سلام، صبح بخیر. | /salâm, sobh bekheyr./ | Hello, good morning. |
| Maryam | سلام، صبح شما هم بخیر. | /salâm, sobh-e shomâ ham bekheyr./ | Hello, good morning to you too. |
| Ali | اسم من علیه. اسم شما چیه؟ | /esm-e man aliye. esm-e shomâ chiye?/ | My name is Ali. What's your name? |
| Maryam | اسم من مریمه. | /esm-e man maryame./ | My name is Maryam. |
| Ali | خوشبختم. | /khoshbakhtam./ | Nice to meet you. |
| Maryam | منم خوشبختم. حالتون چطوره؟ | /manam khoshbakhtam. hâletun chetore?/ | Nice to meet you too. How are you? |
| Ali | خوبم، ممنون. شما چطورید؟ | /khubam, mamnun. shomâ chetorid?/ | I'm fine, thanks. How are you? |
| Maryam | مرسی، منم خوبم. | /mersi, manam khubam./ | Thanks, I'm fine too. |
| Mrs. Karimi | سلام، صبح بخیر. | /salâm, sobh bekheyr./ | Hello, good morning. |
| Ali and Maryam | سلام خانم کریمی. | /salâm khânom-e karimi./ | Hello, Mrs. Karimi. |
| Mrs. Karimi | حالتون چطوره؟ | /hâletun chetore?/ | How are you all? |
| Ali | خیلی خوبیم، مرسی. | /kheyli khubim, mersi./ | We're very well, thanks. |
Ali and Maryam use شما with each other because they have just met. Mrs. Karimi uses the same polite form to the whole class, since شما is also the plural "you".
Useful phrases
The left column shows the spoken form used in the dialogue. Where the written form is different, it is given in the English column so you can recognize it in texts.
| Persian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| اسم من علیه. | /esm-e man aliye./ | My name is Ali. Written: esm-e man ali ast. |
| اسمتون چیه؟ | /esmetun chiye?/ | What's your name? (polite) Written: esm-e shomâ chist? |
| حالت چطوره؟ | /hâlet chetore?/ | How are you? (to a friend) |
| خوبم، مرسی. | /khubam, mersi./ | I'm fine, thanks. |
| بد نیستم. | /bad nistam./ | I'm not bad. |
| منم همین‌طور. | /manam hamintor./ | Me too. Same here. |
| خداحافظ. | /khodâhâfez./ | Goodbye. |
| فعلاً. | /fe'lan./ | Bye for now. (casual) |
Pronunciation tips
- In خوشبختم the kh sound comes twice: kho-sh-bakh-tam. Keep it rough at the back of the throat.
- In spoken Persian, "is" after a name ending in a consonant becomes -e: مریمه (maryame). After a vowel it becomes -ye: علیه (aliye).
- Questions with چطوره and چیه rise slightly at the end.
Role-play
Work with a partner, or play both parts yourself. First, greet a new classmate: say hello, give your name, ask theirs, say nice to meet you and ask how they are, using شما. Then repeat the scene as two old friends, switching to تو: حالت چطوره؟, خوبم، مرسی. Finish both scenes with خداحافظ.
Other pages in this lesson
Practice
-
How does Maryam answer "good morning"?
Show answer
sobh-e shomâ ham bekheyr (good morning to you too) صبح شما هم بخیر.
-
What does Ali say after he learns Maryam's name?
Show answer
khoshbakhtam, nice to meet you خوشبختم.
-
What does this mean? منم خوبم.
Show answer
I'm fine too. (manam khubam)
-
Ask a friend how they are, in spoken Persian.
Show answer
hâlet chetore? حالت چطوره؟
This page is part of the free course Learn to Speak Persian Fast.
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