A series or the news in Persian
The parlor, evening, two people at the television in Persian. 6 phrases that the conversation is made of: «کنترل کجاست؟ میخوام اخبار رو ببینم.» — Where is the remote? I want to watch the news; «بازم اخبار؟ همه‌ش شایعه‌ست.» — The news again? Nothing but rumors.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: the parlor, evening, two people at the television. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- کنترل کجاست؟ میخوام اخبار رو ببینم.kântrâl kâdzhâst؟ mi-khâkham âkhbâr ru binam.Where is the remote? I want to watch the news.
- بازم اخبار؟ همه‌ش شایعه‌ست.bâzem âkhbâr؟ hamesh shâyest.The news again? Nothing but rumors.
- برعکس، این خبرنگار حقیقت رو می‌گه.bârâks, in khâbrânegâr haghighat ru mige.On the contrary, this journalist tells the truth.
- به نظر من غلو می‌کنه؛ یه حادثه رو دو تا می‌کنه.be nazre man gâlu mi-kâne; ye hâdese ru dâ tâ mi-kâne.In my opinion he exaggerates: one accident becomes two.
- تا حدی قبولم، ولی گزارش جالب بود.ta hudi gâbulam, vali gâzâresh dzhâleb bud.I partly agree, but the reportage was interesting.
- خلاصه ببینیم؛ ولی بعدش سریال می‌ذارم.khâlâse binem; vali ba'desh seriâl mi-zâram.In short, we will see; but then I will put on the series.
Lines one by one
| Persian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| کنترل کجاست؟ میخوام اخبار رو ببینم. | kântrâl kâdzhâst؟ mi-khâkham âkhbâr ru binam. | Where is the remote? I want to watch the news. |
| بازم اخبار؟ همه‌ش شایعه‌ست. | bâzem âkhbâr؟ hamesh shâyest. | The news again? Nothing but rumors. |
| برعکس، این خبرنگار حقیقت رو می‌گه. | bârâks, in khâbrânegâr haghighat ru mige. | On the contrary, this journalist tells the truth. |
| به نظر من غلو می‌کنه؛ یه حادثه رو دو تا می‌کنه. | be nazre man gâlu mi-kâne; ye hâdese ru dâ tâ mi-kâne. | In my opinion he exaggerates: one accident becomes two. |
| تا حدی قبولم، ولی گزارش جالب بود. | ta hudi gâbulam, vali gâzâresh dzhâleb bud. | I partly agree, but the reportage was interesting. |
| خلاصه ببینیم؛ ولی بعدش سریال می‌ذارم. | khâlâse binem; vali ba'desh seriâl mi-zâram. | In short, we will see; but then I will put on the series. |
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?
“کنترل کجاست؟ میخوام اخبار رو ببینم.” (kântrâl kâdzhâst؟ mi-khâkham âkhbâr ru binam.) — Where is the remote? I want to watch the news. 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.