Farsi words that learners commonly confuse or misuse, explained side by side. Front: the confusable Farsi words in Persian script with romanization in parentheses. Back: an explanation of the difference.
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- مریض vs مریضی (mariz vs mariz-i)
- Mariz means "sick" (an adjective), mariz-i means "an illness" (a noun); do not confuse the two forms.
- دیدن vs نگاه کردن (didan vs negāh kardan)
- Didan means "to see," negāh kardan means "to look/watch"; the same distinction as English see vs. watch.
- شنیدن vs گوش دادن (shenidan vs goosh dādan)
- Shenidan means "to hear," goosh dādan means "to listen"; the same distinction as English hear vs. listen.
- دانستن vs شناختن (dānestan vs shenākhtan)
- Dānestan means "to know" (a fact), shenākhtan means "to know/recognize" (a person or place), similar to French savoir vs. connaitre.
- رفتن vs آمدن (raftan vs āmadan)
- Raftan means "to go," āmadan means "to come"; easily reversed by new learners.
- خریدن vs فروختن (kharidan vs forukhtan)
- Kharidan means "to buy," forukhtan means "to sell"; opposite actions.
- زود vs دیر (zud vs dir)
- Zud means "early/soon," dir means "late"; opposite meanings that are often mixed up.
- کم vs کمی (kam vs kami)
- Kam means "little/few" (an adjective), kami means "a little bit" (an adverb); similar spelling but a different grammatical role.
- خوب vs خوبی (khub vs khubi)
- Khub means "good"; khubi appears in the greeting "خوبی؟" meaning "are you well?"; do not confuse the two forms.
- حالا vs الان (hālā vs al'ān)
- Both can mean "now," but al'ān is slightly more formal and precise, while hālā is everyday and can also mean "well then."
- دیروز vs پریروز (dirooz vs pariroz)
- Dirooz means "yesterday," pariroz means "the day before yesterday"; easy to mix up.
- فردا vs پسفردا (fardā vs pas-fardā)
- Fardā means "tomorrow," pas-fardā means "the day after tomorrow."
- برادر vs خواهر (barādar vs khāhar)
- Barādar means "brother," khāhar means "sister"; the similar sound pattern trips up beginners.
- عمو vs دایی (amu vs dāyi)
- Amu is the father's brother (paternal uncle), dāyi is the mother's brother (maternal uncle); not interchangeable.
- اتاق vs خانه (otāgh vs khāneh)
- Otāgh means "room," khāneh means "house/home"; do not confuse the part with the whole.
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