Persian does not have separate independent forms corresponding to English I/me or he/him. The same pronoun is used, and a specific direct object is followed by را râ: من را دید man râ did “he or she saw me,” او را دعوت کردم u râ da'vat kardam “I invited him or her.”
Because personal pronouns already identify particular discourse participants, direct-object pronouns normally take را. Colloquial Tehran speech reduces it to رو ro or ـو -o, while object clitics offer a shorter, less independent alternative. These choices change register and focus, not the identity of the referent.
The independent paradigm
| Person | Pronoun | Specific direct object | Meaning | Common colloquial realization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| first singular | من | من را | me | منو |
| second singular | تو | تو را | you | تو رو |
| third singular | او | او را | him/her | اونو |
| first plural | ما | ما را | us | ما رو |
| second plural/polite | شما | شما را | you | شما رو |
| third plural | آنها | آنها را | them | اونا رو |
The pronoun itself does not inflect for object case. را follows the complete object phrase and the verb normally comes later.
او من را جلوی ایستگاه دید.
u man râ jelow-e istgâh did.
He or she saw me in front of the station. (neutral standard)
من او را برای شام دعوت کردم.
man u râ barâ-ye shâm da'vat kardam.
I invited him or her to dinner. (neutral standard)
مدیر شما را به جلسه دعوت کرده است.
modir shomâ râ be jalase da'vat karde ast.
The manager has invited you to the meeting. (polite singular or plural شما)
English changes the pronoun's form; Persian adds a postposed marker. Thinking “independent pronoun + را” is more reliable than looking for a special accusative word.
Why pronoun objects normally take را
را is sensitive to definiteness and specificity, not simply to the existence of any object. A personal pronoun points to a known speaker, addressee, or third person, so it is maximally identifiable. Omitting را from an ordinary direct-object pronoun either changes the parse or makes the sentence unacceptable for the intended reading.
سارا ما را تا خانه رساند.
sârâ mâ râ tâ khâne rasând.
Sara drove us home. (specific human object)
همه آنها را از قبل میشناختند.
hame ân-hâ râ az qabl mi-shenâkhtand.
Everyone already knew them.
This is why the beginner rule is strong: when an independent personal pronoun is the direct object, include را. More advanced variation concerns clitics, null objects, and unusual constructions—not a free optionality of را after من or او.
Contrast and focus favor the independent form
An independent object can bear stress and contrast. An object clitic cannot carry the same independent focus, so the full pronoun plus را is preferred when correcting who was affected.
من را دعوت کردند، نه علی را.
man râ da'vat kardand, na ali râ.
They invited me, not Ali. (contrastive object focus)
این بار تو را انتخاب کردند، نه من را.
in bâr to râ entekhâb kardand, na man râ.
This time they chose you, not me.
Persian permits motivated scrambling, but را remains attached to the right edge of its object phrase. The pair تو را may move as a unit; را does not move in front of تو.
Independent pronoun versus object clitic
The six object clitics ـم، ـت، ـش، ـمان، ـتان، ـشان attach to a host. Compare او را دیدم “I saw him/her” with دیدمش didam-ash “I saw him/her.” The independent form is clearer and can be contrastive; the clitic is phonologically dependent and often presents the object as given information.
او را دیروز در کتابخانه دیدم.
u râ diruz dar ketâbkhâne didam.
I saw him or her at the library yesterday. (independent object)
دیدمش، ولی فرصت نکردم با او حرف بزنم.
didam-ash, vali forsat nakardam bâ u harf bezanam.
I saw him or her, but I didn't get a chance to talk. (object clitic; neutral spoken)
In دیدمش, ـم is the first-singular subject ending and ـش is the third-singular object clitic. Treating both as interchangeable “pronoun endings” hides their different positions and functions. The full system is developed on Object Clitics on Verbs.
Careful, compact, and colloquial forms
Written and careful standard Persian uses من را، او را، آنها را. مرا marâ is a compact current form common in formal and literary writing; it can sound elevated in relaxed conversation. Everyday Tehran speech uses منو، اونو and analytic تو رو، ما رو، شما رو، اونا رو.
این موضوع مرا نگران کرده است.
in mowzu' marâ negarân karde ast.
This matter has worried me. (formal/written compact مرا)
منو جلوی سینما منتظر نذار.
mano jelow-e sinamâ montazer nazâr.
Don't leave me waiting in front of the cinema. (informal, regional: Tehran)
اونو دیروز دیدم، ولی اونا رو ندیدم.
uno diruz didam, vali unâ ro nadidam.
I saw him or her yesterday, but I didn't see them. (informal, regional: Tehran)
These colloquial forms are legitimate within their register. Do not insert them unchanged into formal reports, and do not condemn them as defective standard Persian.
Pronouns after prepositions do not take را
A prepositional object is not a direct object marked by را. Use به من “to me,” با او “with him/her,” and از شما “from you,” with no following را.
به او گفتم ساعت هشت بیاید.
be u goftam sâ'at-e hasht biyâyad.
I told him or her to come at eight.
با شما دربارهی قرارداد صحبت میکنم.
bâ shomâ darbâre-ye qarârdâd sohbat mi-konam.
I will speak with you about the contract. (polite/formal-neutral)
English uses object forms after both verbs and prepositions (me, him, us). Persian keeps the independent pronoun constant but changes the marker before or after it.
Gender and number remain separate
او را means “him” or “her”; the form does not reveal gender. شما را can address one person politely or several people, while the surrounding verb shows the subject's agreement, not the object's number.
لیلا گفت که او را در فرودگاه دیده است.
leylâ goft ke u râ dar forudgâh dide ast.
Leila said that she had seen him or her at the airport. (او را remains gender-neutral)
If two possible third-person referents are present, repeat a name or title rather than expecting او را to disambiguate them.
A short dialogue
چه کسی را برای مصاحبه انتخاب کردند؟
che kasi râ barâ-ye mosâhebe entekhâb kardand?
Whom did they choose for the interview?
من را انتخاب کردند؛ فردا باید برگردم.
man râ entekhâb kardand; fardâ bâyad bargardam.
They chose me; I have to return tomorrow. (focused independent object, then null subject)
Common Mistakes
1. Omitting را after an independent direct-object pronoun
❌ سارا من دید.
Incorrect for ‘Sara saw me’ — the independent specific object من requires را.
✅ سارا من را جلوی در دید.
sârâ man râ jelow-e dar did.
Sara saw me by the door.
2. Adding را after a preposition
❌ به او را گفتم فردا بیاید.
Incorrect — به already marks its prepositional object; را is not added.
✅ به او گفتم فردا بیاید.
be u goftam fardâ biyâyad.
I told him or her to come tomorrow.
3. Placing را before its pronoun
❌ را شما مدیر دعوت کرده است.
Incorrect — را follows the complete direct-object phrase.
✅ مدیر شما را دعوت کرده است.
modir shomâ râ da'vat karde ast.
The manager has invited you.
4. Mistaking a subject ending for an object clitic
✅ دیدم.
didam.
I saw him, her, or it; ـم is the first-singular subject ending.
✅ او من را دید.
u man râ did.
He or she saw me.
Both sentences are grammatical. The first cannot mean “he or she saw me” merely by treating its subject ending as an object clitic.
5. Treating او را as masculine-only
Translating او را as only “him” is a semantic error, not a different pronunciation; Persian او has no gender contrast.
✅ او را دیدم، ولی اسمش را نمیدانم.
u râ didam, vali esm-ash râ nemi-dânam.
I saw him or her, but I don't know the person's name.
Key Takeaways
- Persian uses the ordinary independent pronoun plus را for a specific direct object.
- Pronouns are inherently identifiable, so من را، او را، شما را normally retain را.
- Independent forms carry contrast more readily than attached object clitics.
- Standard را corresponds to colloquial رو/ـو; مرا is a compact formal or literary form.
- Prepositional objects use به من، با او، از شما without را.
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Start learning Farsi →Related Topics
- Subject Pronouns من، تو، او، ما، شما، آنهاA1 — Learn the six independent Persian subject pronouns, match them to verb agreement, and know when ordinary Persian leaves the subject unspoken.
- Gender-Neutral اوA1 — Understand how او covers both he and she, how names and context supply gender, and why third-person agreement remains identical.
- Pro-Drop and When Pronouns AppearA1 — Omit recoverable Persian subject pronouns, but state them for contrast, emphasis, topic changes, politeness, or reference clarity.
- The Six Pronominal EncliticsA2 — Learn the forms, pronunciation, hosts, and multiple grammatical functions of Persian's six attached pronouns.
- Object Clitics on VerbsB1 — Use attached pronouns such as دیدمش for accessible direct objects, recognize rarer indirect readings, and place them correctly on Persian verbs.
- 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.