Two stems, and what each one builds
Every Persian verb has a past stem and a present stem. Learn both with the infinitive and the whole verb system falls into place.
| Stem | Builds |
|---|---|
| past stem | simple past (رفتم), past continuous (میرفتم), participle ـه and all perfect tenses (رفتهام), formal future (خواهم رفت) |
| present stem | present (میروم), subjunctive (بروم), imperative (برو), progressive (دارم میروم) |
The past stem is always the infinitive minus ـن. The present stem often cannot be guessed, so it has to be learned.
Regular patterns
| Infinitive type | Present stem | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ـیدن | drop ـیدن | خریدن → خر (میخرم) |
| ـیدن | drop ـیدن | رسیدن → رس, پرسیدن → پرس |
| ـاندن | ـان | رساندن → رسان (میرسانم) |
| ـادن | usually drop ـادن | فرستادن → فرست, افتادن → افت (but دادن → ده) |
The irregular pairs worth memorising
| Infinitive | Past stem | Present stem |
|---|---|---|
| رفتن (go) | رفت | رو |
| آمدن (come) | آمد | آ |
| گفتن (say) | گفت | گو |
| دیدن (see) | دید | بین |
| کردن (do) | کرد | کن |
| شدن (become) | شد | شو |
| خواستن (want) | خواست | خواه |
| دانستن (know) | دانست | دان |
| توانستن (can) | توانست | توان |
| نوشتن (write) | نوشت | نویس |
| نشستن (sit) | نشست | نشین |
| گرفتن (take) | گرفت | گیر |
| خواندن (read) | خواند | خوان |
| ساختن (build) | ساخت | ساز |
| فروختن (sell) | فروخت | فروش |
| بودن (be) | بود | باش |
| داشتن (have) | داشت | دار |
Stems that end in a vowel
When the present stem ends in ا or و, a ی appears before a vowel ending: آ → میآیم, گو → میگویم, شو → بشویم.
How to look one up
A dictionary lists the infinitive and, in brackets, the present stem: گفتن (گو). Write new verbs down in three columns: infinitive, past stem, present stem.
Watch out as an English speaker
- English irregularity sits in the past ("go / went"); Persian irregularity sits in the present: the past رفتم is regular, but the present is میروم, not میرفتم.
- Do not build a present tense from the infinitive: ✗ میدیدنم / ✓ میبینم.
- میرفتم is a real form, but it means "I used to go", not "I go".
- بودن has two present shapes: هستم for statements, and the stem باش for the subjunctive and imperative (باشم, باش).
Example dialogue
مضارعِ فعل «نوشتن» چه میشود؟ — What is "نوشتن" in the present?
بن مضارعش «نویس» است، پس مینویسم. — Its present stem is نویس, so it is مینویسم.
و ماضیاش؟ — And its past?
نوشتم. بن ماضی همیشه آسان است. — نوشتم. The past stem is always the easy one.