Language/Iranian-persian/Grammar/Lesson-21:-Using-infinitives

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Iranian Persian Grammar → Unit 10: Imperative mood, infinitives and complex sentences → Lesson 21: Using infinitives

Welcome to Unit 10 of our Complete 0 to A1 Iranian Persian Course. In this lesson, we will learn about using infinitives in Persian to express purpose, obligation, permission, and possibility. Infinitives are verb forms that are not inflected for tense, person, or number. They function as either nouns or adjectives in a sentence.

Take a moment to explore these relevant pages as you conclude this lesson: Lesson 5: Present tense conjugation of regular verbs & Come.

Infinitives as nouns

Infinitives can be used as the subject or the direct object of a sentence. In this use, they are similar to gerunds in English. Here are some examples:

Iranian Persian	Pronunciation	English
دیدن	didan	Seeing
خوردن	khordan	Eating
خواندن	khɒːndæn	Reading

• دیدن خوب است. (Didan khub ast.) Seeing is good.
• خوردن حرام است. (Khordan haram ast.) Eating is forbidden.
• خواندن کتاب علاقه‌مندی من است. (Khɒːndæn-e ketab elaqe-mandi-mæn ast.) Reading books is my hobby.

And here is an example with an infinitive as a direct object:

• من دوست دارم شیرینی خوردن. (Man dust daram shirini khordan.) I like to eat sweets.

Infinitives as adjectives

Infinitives can also function as adjectives in Persian. In this use, they describe a noun by indicating its purpose. Here is an example:

• کتاب‌های خواندنی (Ketabhaye khɒːndæni.) Books to read (i.e. readable books)

Here, "khɒːndæni" functions as an adjective that describes the purpose of the books.

Infinitives with prepositions

Infinitives can also be used with prepositions in Persian to express different meanings. Here are some common prepositions used with infinitives:

• برای (baraye): for, to
• بدون (bedun): without
• به (be): to, for
• در (dar): in, at, by
• با (bɒː): with

Here are some examples:

• من برای خواندن کتاب به کتابخانه می‌روم. (Man baraye khɒːndæn-e kitab be ketabkhane miravam.) I go to the library to read books.
• او بدون خوردن غذا کار می‌کند. (Ou bedun khordan-e ghaza kar mikonad.) He works without eating food.
• آیت الکرسی را برای حفظ قرآن می‌خوانم. (Ayat al-kursi ra baraye hefz-e qur'an mikhanam.) I recite Ayat al-Kursi to memorize the Quran.

Infinitives for obligation, permission, and possibility

Infinitives can also be used with modal verbs to express obligation, permission, and possibility in Persian. The modal verb comes first, followed by the infinitive. Here are some examples:

• باید بخواند. (Bayad bkhɒːnad.) Must read. (i.e. he must read)
• می‌توان خورد. (Mitavan khordan.) Can eat. (i.e. he can eat)
• نمی‌توان دید. (Namitavan didan.) Cannot see. (i.e. he cannot see)
• باید هر روز ورزش کرد. (Bayad har ruz varzesh kard.) Must exercise every day.
• می‌توان به فرانسه سفر کرد. (Mitavan be Faranse safar kard.) Can travel to France.
• نمی‌توان پول بسیار دارد. (Namitavan pool-e basiyar darad.) Cannot have a lot of money.

Note that the present tense form of the modal verb is used to express present or future obligation, permission, or possibility. The past tense form is used to express past obligation, permission, or possibility.

Conclusion

In this lesson, we learned about using infinitives in Persian to express purpose, obligation, permission, and possibility. We saw how infinitives can be used as either nouns or adjectives in a sentence, and how they can be combined with prepositions and modal verbs to convey different meanings. I hope this lesson was useful for you, and I encourage you to practice using infinitives in your own Persian sentences.

Sources

• Persian grammar
• Infinitive

Finished this lesson? Check out these related lessons: Past Tense & 0 to A1 Course.

Table of Contents - Iranian Persian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

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Unit 1: Basic greetings and introductions

• Lesson 1: Saying "Hello" and "Goodbye"
• Lesson 2: Introducing yourself and others

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Unit 2: Sentence structure and basic verb conjugation

• Lesson 3: Word order in Persian sentences
• Lesson 4: Present tense conjugation of the verb "to be"
• Lesson 5: Present tense conjugation of regular verbs

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Unit 3: Talking about daily routines

• Lesson 6: Talking about your daily routine
• Lesson 7: Talking about others' daily routines

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Unit 4: Object pronouns and possessive pronouns

• Lesson 8: Direct object pronouns
• Lesson 9: Possessive pronouns

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Unit 5: Persian culture and customs

• Lesson 10: Persian etiquette and hospitality
• Lesson 11: Persian holidays and celebrations

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Unit 6: Food and drink

• Lesson 12: Ordering food and drink
• Lesson 13: Talking about food and drink

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Unit 7: Past tense and regular verbs conjugation

• Lesson 14: Past tense of regular verbs
• Lesson 15: Word order in past tense sentences

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Unit 8: Persian literature and arts

• Lesson 16: Persian poetry and classical literature
• Lesson 17: Persian cinema and music

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Unit 9: Travel and transportation

• Lesson 18: Means of transportation
• Lesson 19: Travel preparations and bookings

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Unit 10: Imperative mood, infinitives and complex sentences

• Lesson 20: Using the imperative mood
• Lesson 21: Using infinitives
• Lesson 22: Complex sentences and conjunctions

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Unit 11: Persian history and geography

• Lesson 23: Persian civilization and ancient history
• Lesson 24: Modern history and contemporary issues

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Unit 12: Leisure and entertainment

• Lesson 25: Sports and active recreation
• Lesson 26: Entertainment and leisure activities

Other Lessons

• Give your Opinion
• Turn
• Plural
• Gender
• Lesson 3: Word order in Persian sentences
• Conditional Mood
• Sentense Structure
• Lesson 8: Direct object pronouns
• How to say goodbye
• Lesson 22: Complex sentences and conjunctions

◀️ Lesson 20: Using the imperative mood — Previous Lesson

Next Lesson — Lesson 22: Complex sentences and conjunctions ▶️