Language/Dari/Grammar/Adjectives

Dari Grammar - Adjectives

Hi Dari learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about adjectives in Dari. Adjectives modify nouns or pronouns by describing, identifying, or quantifying them. They can provide important details about the size, shape, color, or origin of a noun. Adjectives can also describe the state or quality of a noun, such as its age, condition, or emotional value. Understanding adjectives is key to building your vocabulary and expressing yourself accurately in Dari. So, let's get started!

Don't miss the chance to check out these pages as you wrap up this lesson: Dari Grammar: Past Tense, Gender, Questions & Basic Prepositions.

Basics

Like English, adjectives in Dari are placed before or after the noun they modify. When an adjective comes before a noun, it is usually not marked or changed in any way. However, when an adjective follows a noun, it often agrees with the gender, number, and case of the noun. For example:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
مرد خوب	mard-e khub	good man
زن بد	zan-e bad	bad woman
کتاب‌های خوب	ketāb-hā-ye khub	good books
پرس‌های بد	pers-hā-ye bad	bad questions

As you can see, the adjective خوب (khub) agrees with the gender and number of the noun it modifies. When modifying a masculine singular noun such as مرد (mard), it does not change at all. When modifying a feminine singular noun such as زن (zan), it takes the -e suffix. When modifying a plural noun such as کتاب‌ها (ketābhā), it takes the -hā suffix. When modifying a compound noun such as پرس‌ها (pers-hā), it takes the -ye suffix.

Adjectives can also be used as predicate adjectives, which means they appear after a linking verb such as بودن (bodan) or شدن (shodan). In this case, the adjective often agrees with the preceding noun or pronoun in gender and number. For example:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
او خوشحال است.	ū khoshhāl ast.	He is happy.
او خوشحال شد.	ū khoshhāl shod.	He became happy.
آن‌ها مشتاق هستند.	ānhā moshtāq hastand.	They are eager.
آن‌ها مشتاق شدند.	ānhā moshtāq shodand.	They became eager.

In these examples, the adjectives خوشحال (khoshhāl) and مشتاق (moshtāq) agree with the gender and number of the subject they describe.

Types of Adjectives

There are several types of adjectives in Dari, including descriptive adjectives, quantitative adjectives, demonstrative adjectives, interrogative adjectives, and possessive adjectives.

Descriptive Adjectives

Descriptive adjectives describe qualities or attributes of a noun. They can express size, shape, color, texture, or other characteristics. Here are some examples:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
کوچک	kuchak	small
بلند	boland	tall
سفید	sefid	white
نرم	narm	soft

You can use descriptive adjectives to compare two or more nouns as well. In this case, you can use مقایسه کنید (moqāyese konid) or بهتر / بدتر (behtar / badtar) to indicate the comparison. For example:

• Person 1: این کتاب کوچک است. (Īn ketāb kuchak ast.) (This book is small.)
• Person 2: آن کتاب بلندتر است. (Ān ketāb bolandtar ast.) (That book is taller.)

Quantitative Adjectives

Quantitative adjectives quantify or measure a noun. They express the quantity or amount of something. Here are some examples:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
چند	chand	how many
همه	hame	all
بسیار	besyār	very, much
چندین	chandīn	several

When using quantitative adjectives, it may be helpful to know the basic numbers in Dari. Here are the numbers from 1 to 10:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
یک	yek	one
دو	do	two
سه	seh	three
چهار	chahār	four
پنج	panj	five
شش	shesh	six
هفت	haft	seven
هشت	hasht	eight
نه	noh	nine
ده	dah	ten

Demonstrative Adjectives

Demonstrative adjectives point to a specific noun or indicate proximity in space or time. They can express "this" or "that" in relation to the speaker, or "these" or "those" in relation to other nouns. Here are some examples:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
این	īn	this
آن	ān	that
اینها	īnhā	these
آنها	ānhā	those

Demonstrative adjectives can also be used with nouns to indicate possession or association. In this case, they are similar to the English words "my," "your," "his," "her," etc. For example:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
پدر من	pedar-e man	my father
کتاب تو	ketāb-e to	your book
خبرش	khabar-ash	his/her news
بچه‌های ما	bachchahā-ye mā	our children

Interrogative Adjectives

Interrogative adjectives are used to form questions, specifically to ask about a noun. They can express "which" or "what" in relation to the noun. Here are some examples:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
کدام	kodām	which
چه	che	what

Here is an example dialogue using interrogative adjectives:

• Person 1: این ماشین کدام است؟ (Īn māshīn kodām ast?) (Which car is this?)
• Person 2: این ماشین پدر من است. (Īn māshīn pedar-e man ast.) (This car is my father's.)

Possessive Adjectives

Possessive adjectives indicate ownership or possession of a noun. They can express "my," "your," "his," "her," "our," or "their." Here are some examples:

Dari	Pronunciation	English
من	man	my
تو	to	your
او	ū	his/her
ما	mā	our
آن‌ها	ānhā	their

Here is an example dialogue using possessive adjectives:

• Person 1: کتاب تو کجاست؟ (Ketāb-e to kojāst?) (Where is your book?)
• Person 2: کتاب من روی میز است. (Ketāb-e man rūy-e mīz ast.) (My book is on the table.)

Conclusion

Adjectives are an essential part of Dari grammar and vocabulary. They can help you describe the world around you and express yourself accurately. In this lesson, we covered several types of adjectives, including descriptive, quantitative, demonstrative, interrogative, and possessive. To practice using adjectives, try describing objects or people around you, or ask someone some questions using interrogative adjectives. To improve your Dari Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

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➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

With this lesson finished, you may want to explore these additional pages: Resources, Give your Opinion & Describing People and Things.

Other Lessons

• Give your Opinion
• Pronouns
• Conditional Mood
• Gender
• Negation
• How to Use Be
• How to Use Have
• Questions
• Plurals

Sources

• Dari Adjectives
• Dari Adjectives | LEARN101.ORG