Wi-fi at the coffee shop in Persian
A coffee shop in the north of Tehran, a guest’s phone is dying in Persian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «ببخشید, وایفای دارید؟» — Excuse me, is there wi-fi?; «بله. رمز اینجاست.» — Yes. The code is right here.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a coffee shop in the north of Tehran, a guest’s phone is dying. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- ببخشید, وایفای دارید؟bebakhshid, vây-fây dârid؟Excuse me, is there wi-fi?
- بله. رمز اینجاست.bale. ramz indzhâst.Yes. The code is right here.
- ممنون. باتری خالیه, شارژر دارید؟memnun. batâri khâlie, shârzher dârid؟Thanks. The battery is dead — is there a charger?
- پریز آنجاست, نزدیک پنجره.pariz ândzhâst, nazdike pandzhere.The outlet is over there, by the window.
- ممنون! باید پیامی بفرستم.memnun! bâyad peyâmi befârestam.Thanks! I need to send a message.
- وایفای اینجا خوب است.vây-fây indzhâ khub ast.The wi-fi here is good.
- چت باز شد! حالا می‌توانم عکس بفرستم.chet bâz shâd! hâlâ mi-tunam aks befârestam.The chat opened! Now I can send the photo.
Lines one by one
| Persian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ببخشید, وایفای دارید؟ | bebakhshid, vây-fây dârid؟ | Excuse me, is there wi-fi? |
| بله. رمز اینجاست. | bale. ramz indzhâst. | Yes. The code is right here. |
| ممنون. باتری خالیه, شارژر دارید؟ | memnun. batâri khâlie, shârzher dârid؟ | Thanks. The battery is dead — is there a charger? |
| پریز آنجاست, نزدیک پنجره. | pariz ândzhâst, nazdike pandzhere. | The outlet is over there, by the window. |
| ممنون! باید پیامی بفرستم. | memnun! bâyad peyâmi befârestam. | Thanks! I need to send a message. |
| وایفای اینجا خوب است. | vây-fây indzhâ khub ast. | The wi-fi here is good. |
| چت باز شد! حالا می‌توانم عکس بفرستم. | chet bâz shâd! hâlâ mi-tunam aks befârestam. | The chat opened! Now I can send the photo. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Persian in this situation?
“ببخشید, وایفای دارید؟” (bebakhshid, vây-fây dârid؟) — Excuse me, is there wi-fi? The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.