The simple preposition با bâ links an event to a companion, instrument, means, manner, or opposing participant. Its English translation is often with, but may instead be by, using, or against: با دوستم رفتم “I went with my friend,” با کارت پرداخت کردم “I paid by card,” با حوصله گوش داد “she listened patiently,” با تیم ما بازی کردند “they played against our team.”
These meanings share one underlying relation: the با phrase introduces something that participates alongside the central event. Whether that participant is a person, tool, manner, or opponent comes from the noun and verb—not from a different form of با.
Core meaning map
| Relation | Pattern | Typical English | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| companion | با + person/group | with | all registers |
| instrument | با + tool/material | with, using | all registers |
| means | با + transport/method | by | all registers |
| manner | با + abstract noun | with, in a … manner, adverb | neutral to formal |
| interaction/opposition | verb + با + participant | with, against | lexically selected |
با directly precedes its complement and does not take ezâfe: با مریم، با چاقو، با دقت. Any ezâfe inside the complement still remains, as in با دوست قدیمیام bâ dust-e qadimi-am “with my old friend.”
Accompaniment: a co-participant
With a person or group, با marks someone participating alongside the subject. It does not make that companion a direct object.
امروز با خواهرم برای خرید بیرون رفتم.
emruz bâ khâhar-am barâ-ye kharid birun raftam.
Today I went out shopping with my sister. (neutral standard)
ناهید با دو همکارش در کافه نشست.
nâhid bâ do hamkâr-ash dar kâfe neshast.
Nahid sat in the café with two of her colleagues. (neutral standard)
میخواهی فردا با ما به نمایشگاه بیایی؟
mi-khâhi fardâ bâ mâ be namâyeshgâh biyâyi?
Would you like to come to the exhibition with us tomorrow? (careful spoken standard)
English with can also express possession—the woman with the red coat. Persian does not automatically use با for every such attributive relation; it may prefer زنی با پالتوی قرمز in a descriptive frame or an ezâfe construction depending on meaning. Learn the accompaniment use first as part of the clause.
Instruments and materials
An instrument is something the agent uses to perform the action. The action itself determines what counts as a plausible tool.
در را با کلید یدکی باز کردم.
dar râ bâ kelid-e yadaki bâz kardam.
I opened the door with the spare key. (neutral standard)
لطفا این فرم را با خودکار آبی پر کنید.
lotfâ in form râ bâ khodkâr-e âbi por konid.
Please fill out this form with a blue pen. (formal/polite instruction)
سرآشپز سس را با سبزی تازه درست کرد.
sarâshpaz sos râ bâ sabzi-ye tâze dorost kard.
The chef made the sauce with fresh herbs. (neutral standard; ingredient/material)
The phrase may name a tool (با کلید) or material incorporated into a result (با سبزی تازه). English uses with for both; Persian lets plausibility and the verb distinguish them.
Do not extend this to every English by. A human agent in a formal passive is commonly introduced with توسط, while a deadline uses تا: “by Friday” is تا جمعه, not با جمعه.
Means of transport and method
With transport, payment, or communication, با identifies the means by which the event occurs.
برای اینکه دیر نرسیم با مترو میرویم.
barâ-ye inke dir narasim bâ metro mi-ravim.
We're going by metro so that we won't be late. (neutral standard)
هزینهی بلیت را با کارت پرداخت کردم.
hazine-ye belit râ bâ kârt pardâkht kardam.
I paid for the ticket by card. (neutral standard)
نتیجه را با ایمیل برایتان میفرستیم.
natije râ bâ imeyl barâ-yetân mi-ferestim.
We will send you the result by email. (formal-neutral)
Persian also has more specialized expressions such as از طریق “through/by way of,” especially in formal prose. با ایمیل is ordinary and direct; از طریق ایمیل sounds more administrative.
Manner: how an action is performed
Abstract nouns after با often function adverbially: با دقت “carefully,” با احترام “respectfully,” با عجله “in a hurry,” با آرامش “calmly.” Persian uses a prepositional phrase where English may use an adverb.
قرارداد را با دقت بخوانید و بعد امضا کنید.
qarârdâd râ bâ deqqat bekhânid va ba'd emzâ konid.
Read the contract carefully and then sign it. (formal/polite instruction)
با آرامش مسئله را برای بچهها توضیح داد.
bâ ârâmesh mas'ale râ barâ-ye bachche-hâ towzih dâd.
He or she calmly explained the issue to the children. (neutral standard)
These combinations are productive, but not every English adverb maps to با + noun. Prefer established collocations rather than inventing one mechanically.
Interaction and adversative با
Certain predicates select با for the other participant: با کسی صحبت کردن “talk with someone,” با کسی موافق بودن “agree with someone,” با کسی بحث کردن “argue with someone.” In competitions, that participant is an opponent and English often chooses against.
در این مورد با مدیر پروژه موافق نیستم.
dar in mowred bâ modir-e porozhe movâfeq nistam.
I don't agree with the project manager on this matter. (neutral standard)
تیم ما هفتهی بعد با قهرمان لیگ بازی میکند.
tim-e mâ hafte-ye ba'd bâ qahremân-e lig bâzi mi-konad.
Our team plays the league champion next week. (با marks the opponent)
This use is lexically selected: the same با phrase can describe cooperation, conversation, disagreement, or opposition depending on the predicate. The broader principle of memorizing a verb together with its preposition is developed on Verb–Preposition Valency.
Pronouns and colloquial باهاش forms
Independent pronouns work in every register: با من، با تو، با او، با ما، با شما، با آنها. For contrast or professional politeness, they are the safest choice. Everyday Tehran speech commonly uses باهام، باهات، باهاش، باهامون، باهاتون، باهاشون (informal, regional: Tehran).
فردا با شما تماس میگیرم.
fardâ bâ shomâ tamâs mi-giram.
I will contact you tomorrow. (polite standard)
دیشب باهاش حرف زدم؛ حالش بهتره.
dishab bâhâsh harf zadam; hâl-ash behtare.
I talked to him or her last night; they're feeling better. (informal, regional: Tehran)
The extra ها belongs to this colloquial family; do not generate باش for “with him/her.” Standard با او is gender-neutral, and colloquial باهاش is too.
A short dialogue
با ماشین میرویم یا با قطار؟
bâ mâshin mi-ravim yâ bâ qatâr?
Are we going by car or by train? (careful spoken standard)
با قطار بریم؛ مینا هم باهامون میاد.
bâ qatâr berim; minâ ham bâhâmun miyâd.
Let's go by train; Mina is coming with us too. (informal, regional: Tehran)
The first با phrases express transport; باهامون in the reply expresses human accompaniment. The same preposition supports both because the complement's semantic type resolves the relation.
Common Mistakes
1. Copying English “to” for accompaniment
❌ به دوستم به موزه رفتم.
Incorrect for ‘with my friend’ — the companion requires با.
✅ با یکی از دوستانم به موزه رفتم.
bâ yeki az dustân-am be muze raftam.
I went to the museum with one of my friends.
2. Translating deadline “by” with با
❌ گزارش را با جمعه بفرستید.
Incorrect for a deadline — Persian uses تا ‘by/no later than.’
✅ گزارش نهایی را تا جمعه بفرستید.
gozâresh-e nahâyi râ tâ jom'e beferestid.
Send the final report by Friday. (formal/polite)
3. Replacing the companion preposition with را
❌ همکارم را به جلسه رفتم.
Incorrect — the colleague is a companion, not the direct object of رفتم.
✅ با همکارم به جلسه رفتم.
bâ hamkâr-am be jalase raftam.
I went to the meeting with my colleague.
4. Separating the colloquial clitic family
❌ دیروز با هاش صحبت کردم.
Incorrect spelling and clitic placement — ها and ش form one host-dependent expression with با.
✅ دیروز باهاش دربارهی سفر صحبت کردم.
diruz bâhâsh darbâre-ye safar sohbat kardam.
I spoke with him or her about the trip yesterday. (informal, regional: Tehran)
Key Takeaways
- با introduces a co-participant: companion, instrument, means, manner, or opponent.
- The complement and predicate determine whether English says with, by, using, or against.
- با directly governs its complement; ezâfe belongs only inside a more complex complement.
- Use independent با من/تو/او/شما across registers; باهام/باهات/باهاش belong to everyday Tehran speech.
- English by is not a reliable cue: deadlines use تا, and formal passive agents often use توسط.
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- در، به، از، با، برایA1 — Use the five core Persian prepositions for location, destination, source, accompaniment, and beneficiary, with clear standard and colloquial contrasts.
- Source and Separation with ازA2 — Use از for physical sources, separation, comparison, cause, material, information sources, and common verb-governed complements.
- Purpose and Beneficiary with برایA2 — Use برای for beneficiaries, intended users, and purposes, extend it with اینکه to goal clauses, and choose standard or colloquial pronominal forms.
- Clitics on PrepositionsB1 — Learn how Persian pronoun clitics attach to simple and complex prepositions, including formal forms such as برایش and colloquial forms such as باهات.
- Verb-Preposition ValencyB2 — Learn Persian verbs together with the prepositions they select, including وابسته بودن به, صحبت کردن دربارهی, ترسیدن از, and other high-frequency frames.
- Adverb Placement in Neutral ClausesA2 — Place Persian time, place, manner, frequency, and degree expressions in natural neutral clauses while recognizing their mobility and focus effects.