Persian does not mark every direct object in the same way. Use را after an object that the speaker presents as identifiable, particular, or already active in the discourse; leave it out with many bare, nonspecific objects that name a kind, quantity, or activity. Compare کتاب خواندم “I did some reading/read a book” with کتاب را خواندم “I read the contextually identifiable book.”
This is called differential object marking. It cannot be reduced to “را means the” or “all people take را.” Grammatical role comes first, then discourse status. For the full analysis, see Differential Object Marking with را.
The Decision Tree
- Is the noun phrase the direct object? If it is a subject or follows a preposition, do not add object marker را.
- Is the direct object a personal pronoun, proper name, demonstrative phrase, possessed noun, or previously mentioned item? Use را.
- Is it indefinite but the speaker has one particular person or thing in mind? را is common, especially when a relative clause identifies it.
- Is it a bare nonspecific object expressing an activity, kind, material, or unbounded quantity? Normally omit را.
- Is the context still ambiguous? Ask whether the listener is meant to retrieve or track a particular referent. If yes, choose را.
| Object | Default choice | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| او، مریم | را | pronoun/proper name is identifiable |
| این پرونده، کلیدم | را | demonstrative or possession anchors a particular item |
| پزشکی که میشناسم | often را | indefinite to the listener but specific to the speaker |
| نان، کتاب، موسیقی | often no را | kind, quantity, or activity is foregrounded |
Use را with Identifiable Objects
Pronouns and proper names identify their referents directly. Demonstratives, possessive phrases, and prior mention also make an object accessible. In neutral modern Persian, these direct objects take را.
مریم را بعد از کلاس جلوی ایستگاه دیدم.
Maryam râ ba'd az kelâs jelow-ye istgâh didam.
I saw Maryam by the station after class. (neutral standard; proper name)
این رسید را تا هفتهی بعد نگه دار.
in resid râ tâ hafte-ye ba'd negah dâr.
Keep this receipt until next week. (neutral standard; demonstrative object)
بالاخره شارژرم را توی کشوی میز پیدا کردم.
bâlâkhare shârzher-am râ tu-ye keshow-ye miz peydâ kardam.
I finally found my charger in the desk drawer. (neutral conversation; possessed object)
را follows the complete noun phrase, not the first noun inside it: این رسید قدیمی را. Its position is described on Position of Direct Objects and را.
Omit را with Bare Nonspecific Objects
A bare object close to its verb often presents an activity or category rather than an individuated thing. نان خریدم reports bread-buying; موسیقی گوش میدهم describes an activity. Adding را would make the context seek a particular bread supply or a particular music selection.
در راه خانه نان و پنیر خریدم.
dar râh-e khâne nân va panir kharidam.
On the way home I bought bread and cheese. (neutral; nonspecific kinds/quantities)
وقتی کار میکنم موسیقی آرام گوش میدهم.
vaghti kâr mi-konam musighi-ye ârâm gush mi-daham.
When I work, I listen to calm music. (neutral; habitual kind-level object)
برای اتاق مهمان پرده سفارش دادهایم.
barâ-ye otâgh-e mehmân parde sefâresh dâde-im.
We have ordered curtains for the guest room. (neutral; the purchase category matters)
Omission does not mean that the noun is not an object. Word order and the verb still establish its role. It means that the speaker does not package it as a tracked particular referent.
Specific Indefinites Can Take را
An object may be indefinite because the listener cannot identify it, yet specific because the speaker has one particular referent in mind. This is common with ـی plus a relative clause.
پزشکی را میشناسم که عصرها ویزیت آنلاین دارد.
pezeshki râ mi-shenâsam ke asr-hâ vizit-e ânlâyn dârad.
I know a doctor who offers online appointments in the evenings. (neutral; speaker-specific indefinite)
فایلی را که دیشب فرستادی باز نکردم.
fâyli râ ke dishab ferestâdi bâz nakardam.
I did not open a file that you sent last night. (neutral; the relative clause anchors a particular file)
The first noun remains indefinite for the listener: they may not know which doctor. را does not turn it into an English the. It signals the speaker's commitment to a particular direct object. The specialist page Specific Indefinites with ی plus را covers the boundary cases.
Animacy Helps, but It Is Not the Rule
Humans are naturally easy to individuate, so human objects often take را. But animacy alone does not decide. A named or known person strongly requires را; an indefinite person introduced without speaker commitment can occur without it, especially in presentational contexts.
دیروز توی قطار یک استاد زبان دیدم.
diruz tu-ye ghatâr yek ostâd-e zabân didam.
Yesterday I saw/met a language teacher on the train. (neutral; newly encountered nonspecific person)
استاد زبانمان را در واگن آخر دیدم.
ostâd-e zabân-emân râ dar vâgon-e âkhar didam.
I saw our language teacher in the last carriage. (neutral; possessed and identifiable human object)
The verb matters too. پزشک دیدم can mean “I saw a doctor/had a medical consultation,” with the profession functioning almost as an event type. پزشک را دیدم means that I saw the identifiable doctor. Animacy raises the likelihood of specificity; it does not replace discourse analysis.
A Minimal Contrast
دیشب کتاب خواندم تا خوابم ببرد.
dishab ketâb khândam tâ khâbam bebarad.
Last night I read to help myself fall asleep. (activity; no tracked book)
دیشب کتاب را خواندم و امروز پسش میدهم.
dishab ketâb râ khândam va emruz pas-ash mi-daham.
I read the book last night and will return it today. (accessible, tracked book)
The verb and past time are the same. The second sentence makes the book part of an ongoing discourse chain; را tells the listener to recover that particular book.
Two Ambiguous Contexts, Resolved Aloud
A book already on the table
If you and a colleague can both see a report, say گزارش را بردار. If you are merely asking them to pick up any report form from a stack, say یک گزارش بردار or گزارشی بردار, without را. Pointing, gaze, and stress can supply identifiability even when the noun itself has no demonstrative.
همان گزارش کنار لپتاپ را بردار.
hamân gozâresh-e kenâr-e laptop râ bardâr.
Pick up that same report beside the laptop. (neutral; situationally identifiable object)
Asking for help from an unknown person
کسی را صدا کن often implies some particular suitable person is to be summoned, while یک نفر صدا کن can simply request any one person. Intonation and context sharpen the commitment; the marker does not encode animacy by itself.
اگر مسئول شیفت را دیدی، فوری صدایش کن.
agar mas'ul-e shift râ didi, fowri sedâ-yash kon.
If you see the shift supervisor, call them over immediately. (neutral; role identifies the intended person)
Register: را, رو, and ـو
Write را in standard prose and pronounce it râ in careful speech. In everyday Tehran speech (informal, regional: Tehran), it is normally رو ro after a noun phrase and may surface as ـو -o after pronouns or other frequent hosts. Do not mix a fully colloquial marker with otherwise formal morphology in one register-sensitive sentence.
اون پیام رو دیدی یا هنوز گوشیت خاموشه؟
un payâm ro didi yâ hanuz gushit khâmushe?
Did you see that message, or is your phone still off? (informal, regional: Tehran)
Common Mistakes
1. Adding را after every English direct object
⚠️ هر روز قهوه را میخورم.
har ruz ghahve râ mi-khoram.
Grammatical if a particular coffee is already identifiable, but wrong for the intended generic habit ‘I drink coffee every day.’
✅ هر روز بعد از ناهار قهوه میخورم.
har ruz ba'd az nâhâr ghahve mi-khoram.
I drink coffee every day after lunch.
2. Omitting را after an identifiable proper name
❌ سارا دیروز در بازار دیدم.
Incorrect — سارا is a specific direct object and needs را.
✅ سارا را دیروز نزدیک بازارچه دیدم.
Sârâ râ diruz nazdik-e bâzârche didam.
I saw Sara near the market yesterday.
3. Treating را as a definite article after a preposition
❌ با مدیر را دربارهی بودجه صحبت کردیم.
Incorrect — با already introduces its complement; را is not a general equivalent of ‘the.’
✅ با مدیر بخش دربارهی بودجه صحبت کردیم.
bâ modir-e bakhsh darbâre-ye budje sohbat kardim.
We spoke with the department manager about the budget.
4. Putting را inside the noun phrase
❌ این را پروندهی قدیمی پیدا کردم.
Incorrect — را follows the whole direct-object phrase.
✅ این پروندهی قدیمی را در بایگانی پیدا کردم.
in parvande-ye ghadimi râ dar bâyegâni peydâ kardam.
I found this old file in the archive.
Key Takeaways
Final checklist:
- Not a direct object? No object marker را.
- Pronoun, name, demonstrative, possessed item, or prior mention? Use را.
- Particular indefinite known to the speaker? را is often appropriate.
- Bare activity, kind, material, or unbounded quantity? Usually omit it.
- Human object? Check specificity; do not mark by animacy alone.
- Standard prose: را. Informal Tehran speech: رو / ـو.
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Start learning Farsi →Related Topics
- Differential Object Marking with راB1 — Use Persian را according to an object's identifiability, specificity, animacy, and discourse status rather than marking every direct object mechanically.
- Specific Indefinites with ی plus راB1 — Combine Persian indefinite ی with را when a direct object is new to the listener but particular in the speaker's intended reference.
- Position of Direct Objects and راA2 — Place bare, indefinite, and specific Persian direct objects before the verb, and attach را to the complete object phrase.
- The Postposition را: First OrientationA1 — Recognize را as a postposition after a specific direct-object phrase, pronounce it râ in standard Persian, and distinguish it from English to or for.
- Object Marker را to رو or ـوB1 — Place Tehran رو after vowel-final objects and weak ـو after consonant-final hosts while distinguishing the object marker from conjunction و.