ببخشید
“ببخشید” (bebakhshid) — excuse me in Persian. Interjection, level A0, topic — polite words. Literally "may you be pardoned". It stops a stranger on the street, apologizes for a nudge and asks the time — one word for all three. In a live sentence: “ببخشید, ایستگاه کجاست؟” — Excuse me, where is the station? Written with the characters ب, ب, خ, ش, ی, د. One of 8 words in the set “polite words” in the Persian course.
In short
| Written in Persian | ببخشید |
| Read in Latin letters | bebakhshid |
| Translation | excuse me |
| Part of speech | interjection |
| Level | A0 |
Why it looks that way
Literally "may you be pardoned". It stops a stranger on the street, apologizes for a nudge and asks the time — one word for all three
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- ببخشید, ایستگاه کجاست؟bebakhshid, iystgâ kâdzhâst؟Excuse me, where is the station?
Nearby words: polite words
“Thank you”, “please” and “sorry” carry you while the rest of the words are still missing: with them even a gesture reads as a request rather than a demand.
- ممنونmemnunthank youLiterally "obliged" — the same word of courtesy some fairy tales borrow. The polite choice; the borrowed "mersi" is the street one
- لطفاlâtfanpleaseLiterally "out of kindness". It closes a request — cha, lotfan, tea please — and softens an offer the same way
- خواهش میکنمkhâhesh mi-kânamyou are welcomeLiterally "I beg, I request". Answering thanks with "I beg" sounds grand in English and perfectly routine here
- شماshâmâyou (polite)The respectful you, and it serves one respected person too — the same move as French vous. Its verb goes plural
- خسته نباشیدkhaste nebâshidthanks for your workLiterally "may you not be tired" — said to anyone who has been working: a shopkeeper, a bus driver, a whole office
- صبر کنیدsâbr kânidplease waitSabr is patience; konid does it politely — plural you. Sabr konid, lotfan: wait, please
- قابلی ندارهgâbeli nadâreno problemLiterally "it has no worth [as a favor]" — qabol means acceptance. The street answer to thanks, warmer than the formal one
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “polite words”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “excuse me” in Persian?
Literally "may you be pardoned". It stops a stranger on the street, apologizes for a nudge and asks the time — one word for all three
- How do you say “no problem” in Persian?
Literally "it has no worth [as a favor]" — qabol means acceptance. The street answer to thanks, warmer than the formal one
- How do you say “please wait” in Persian?
Sabr is patience; konid does it politely — plural you. Sabr konid, lotfan: wait, please
- How do you say “thanks for your work” in Persian?
Literally "may you not be tired" — said to anyone who has been working: a shopkeeper, a bus driver, a whole office
- How do you say “you (polite)” in Persian?
The respectful you, and it serves one respected person too — the same move as French vous. Its verb goes plural
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “excuse me” in Persian?
«ببخشید», read “bebakhshid”. In a live sentence: “ببخشید, ایستگاه کجاست؟” — Excuse me, where is the station? Interjection, level A0, from the set “polite words”; written with the characters ب, ب, خ, ش, ی, د.
How is “ببخشید” written in Latin letters?
bebakhshid. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Literally "may you be pardoned". It stops a stranger on the street, apologizes for a nudge and asks the time — one word for all three. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.