The Ezafe — Persian Grammar

If you learn one thing about Persian grammar, learn this. The ezafe is a tiny unstressed vowel, an -e, added to the end of a word to link it to whatever comes next. It does the work that English does with word order, with "of", and with apostrophe-s, and it appears in almost every sentence of the language.

What It Joins

The ezafe, the little linking vowel -e, joins four kinds of pairs. A noun to an adjective describing it:

⁧کِتابِ جَدید⁩
ketâb-e jadidketâb-e jadidktab-a jdyd
a new book
⁧ماشینِ کوچَک⁩
mâšin-e kučakmâshin-e kuchakmašyn-a kvčk
a small car

A noun to its owner:

⁧کِتابِ مَن⁩
ketâb-e manketâb-e manktab-a mn
my book
⁧خانِه‌یِ جَدیدِ مَن⁩
xâne-ye jadid-e mankhâne-ye jadid-e manxanh-y jdyd-a mn
my new house

A noun to another noun that defines it:

⁧رانَندِه‌یِ اُتُوبوس⁩
rânande-ye otobusrânande-ye otobusranndh-y atvbvs
the bus driver
⁧ایستگاهِ اُتُوبوس⁩
istgâh-e otobusistgâh-e otobusaystgah-a atvbvs
the bus stop

And a title or a first name to what follows:

⁧خانُمِ دُکتُر⁩
xânom-e doktorkhânom-e doktorxanm-a dktr
Doctor (addressing a woman)
⁧خانُمِ اِسمیت⁩
xânom-e esmitkhânom-e esmitxanm-a asmyt
Ms Smith

The Direction Is the Opposite of English

English puts the describing word first - a new book, the bus driver. Persian puts the thing first and hangs everything else off it with the ezafe, a linking -e. Read (rânande-ye otobusrânande-ye otobusranndh-y atvbvs) as "driver-of-bus" and the order stops feeling strange.

How It Sounds and How It Is Written

After a consonant the ezafe, the vowel that links a word to the next, is a plain -e. After a vowel a ⁧ی⁩ (ye) appears to carry it, and the ending is heard as -ye.

⁧دوستِ مَن⁩
dust-e mandust-e mandvst-a mn
my friend
⁧خانِه‌یِ مَن⁩
xâne-ye mankhâne-ye manxanh-y mn
my house

In writing it is barely there. The ezafe is a kasra, and Persian normally leaves the short-vowel marks off the page, so in an ordinary book or newspaper nothing whatever appears between (ketâbketâbktab) and (manmanmn) - the reader supplies the -e from context and from knowing the language. Where a ⁧ی⁩ (ye) is needed to carry it, that letter does get written, and it is the one visible trace the ezafe ever leaves.

It Chains

Several ezafes - the linking -e - can follow one another, each hooking the next piece on. The chain is read straight through, from the first word to the last.

⁧صَندَلیِ اِداریِ قَدیمیِ مَن⁩
ṣandali-ye edâri-ye qadimi-ye mansandali-ye edâri-ye qadimi-ye manṣndly-y adary-y qdymy-y mn
my old office chair
⁧فیلمِ مُورِدِ عَلاقِه‌یِ مَن⁩
film-e mored-e ʿalâqe-ye manfilm-e mored-e 'alâqe-ye manfylm-a mvrd-a ʿlaqh-y mn
my favourite film

Unpicked, the first is "chair - office - old - my", which arrives at the same place as the English by exactly the opposite route.

Where It Does Not Go

Numbers and demonstratives come before their noun and take no ezafe at all.

⁧این کِتاب⁩
in ketâbin ketâbayn ktab
this book
⁧دُو ماشین⁩
do mâšindo mâshindv mašyn
two cars

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s Persian course

262 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 2. A few of them, with the words “The Ezafe” is about in bold:

این دوست من آنا است. او یک دانشجو است.
in dust-e man ânâ ast. u yek dânešju ast.in dust-e man ânâ ast. u yek dâneshju ast.ayn dvst mn ana ast. av yk danšjv ast.
This is my friend, Anna. She is a student.
Lesson 2
من برای شما هم یک دوجین تخم‌مرغ و یک آب‌نبات خریدم.
man barây-e šomâ ham yek dojin toxme-morġ va yek âb-nabât xaridam.man barây-e shomâ ham yek dojin tokhme-morgh va yek âb-nabât kharidam.mn bray šma hm yk dvjyn txm-mrġ v yk ab-nbat xrydm.
I bought a dozen eggs and a candy bar for you too.
Lesson 47
احساس خوبی دارم! من مریض نیستم. من سالم هستم.
eḥsâs-e xubi dâram! man mariḍ nistam. man sâlem hastam.ehsâs-e khubi dâram! man mariz nistam. man sâlem hastam.aḥsas xvby darm! mn mryḍ nystm. mn salm hstm.
I feel great! I am not sick. I am healthy.
Lesson 64

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