ایشان ishân has two related human uses. In formal writing it can mean plural “they,” and in respectful reference to one absent person it means deferential “he” or “she.” In the respectful singular use, meaning is singular but grammatical agreement is plural: ایشان آمدند ishân âmadand “He/She came.”
English has no productive third-person honorific pronoun with plural agreement. Translating ایشان as “they” before checking context can therefore invent a group where Persian refers to one respected person. Conversely, treating it as singular in Persian and using آمد loses the honorific agreement pattern.
Two readings, one agreement pattern
| Use | Referent | Verb agreement | Typical setting | English rendering |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| formal plural | several people | third plural | formal writing, careful reference | they |
| respectful singular | one respected person | third plural | deferential speech and writing | he/she |
| colloquial respectful ایشون | normally one respected person | colloquial third plural | everyday Tehran politeness | he/she |
Only context resolves whether standard ایشان denotes one person respectfully or several people formally. The form itself is gender-neutral in both readings.
ایشان فردا به دفتر میآیند.
ishân fardâ be daftar mi-âyand.
They are coming to the office tomorrow, or: He/She is coming tomorrow. (formal; context resolves number)
دکتر نادری گفتند که نتیجه آماده است.
doktor-e nâderi goftand ke natije âmâde ast.
Dr. Naderi said that the result is ready. (respectful singular with plural agreement)
ایشان در پایان نشست به پرسشها پاسخ دادند.
ishân dar pâyân-e neshast be porsesh-hâ pâsokh dâdand.
They answered questions at the end of the session, or: He/She answered questions. (formal)
Respectful singular agreement
When ایشان is the subject, the finite verb or copula takes third-plural morphology: هستند، بودند، گفتند، میآیند، آمدهاند. Adjectives themselves remain invariant.
ایشان از نتیجه راضی هستند.
ishân az natije râzi hastand.
He or she is satisfied with the result. (respectful singular)
ایشان پیش از شروع جلسه رسیده بودند.
ishân pish az shoru'-e jalase reside budand.
He or she had arrived before the meeting began. (respectful singular)
ایشان بسیار دقیق و منظماند.
ishân besyâr daqiq va monazzam-and.
He or she is very precise and organized. (formal respectful singular)
Plural agreement signals deference, not biological or numerical plurality. The adjectives دقیق and منظم do not take plural endings; only the copula does.
Agreement follows grammatical role, not mere proximity
Not every verb near ایشان becomes plural. If ایشان is a possessor or object rather than the subject, agreement follows the actual subject.
نظر ایشان برای ما مهم است.
nazar-e ishân barâ-ye mâ mohem ast.
His, her, or their opinion is important to us. (نظر is the singular subject)
من ایشان را دیروز ملاقات کردم.
man ishân râ diruz molâqât kardam.
I met him, her, or them yesterday. (ایشان is the object; کردم agrees with من)
The first clause uses singular است because نظر is the subject. In the second, کردم is first singular because من is the subject. Honorific plurality is not a suffix that spreads mechanically to every predicate in the sentence.
ایشان versus او
او is the neutral standard third-singular pronoun; it is not inherently rude. ایشان adds deference, distance, or institutional formality. The social choice depends on the relationship, genre, and how the speaker presents the person.
او امروز در خانه کار میکند.
u emruz dar khâne kâr mi-konad.
He or she is working at home today. (neutral)
ایشان امروز در منزل کار میکنند.
ishân emruz dar manzel kâr mi-konand.
He or she is working at home today. (deferential/formal)
The lexical choice منزل reinforces formality in the second example, but it is not required by the pronoun. Politeness is cumulative: pronoun, title, verb choice, and tone can all contribute.
ایشان is normally third-person reference, not address
Use شما when speaking directly to a respected person: شما آمادهاید؟ “Are you ready?” Use ایشان when speaking about that person. Some highly deferential styles use titles or nominal expressions in elaborate ways, but learners should not substitute ایشان for ordinary polite second-person شما.
شما چه ساعتی تشریف میآورید؟
shomâ che sâ'ati tashrif mi-âvarid?
What time will you come? (direct polite address)
ایشان چه ساعتی تشریف میآورند؟
ishân che sâ'ati tashrif mi-âvarand?
What time will he or she come? (respectful third-person reference)
This person contrast is more important than the English translation, which may use you in one sentence and he/she in the other.
Colloquial ایشون
Everyday polite Tehran speech commonly uses ایشون ishun for a respected third-singular referent. It pairs naturally with colloquial plural verbs such as هستن، اومدن، میان.
ایشون الان جلسه دارن و پس از جلسه تماس میگیرن.
ishun alân jalase dâran va pas az jalase tamâs mi-giran.
He or she is in a meeting now and will call after the meeting. (informal respectful, regional: Tehran)
دکتر کجا هستن؟ ایشون هنوز توی اتاق عملن.
doktor kojâ hastan? ishun hanuz tu-ye otâq-e amal-an.
Where is the doctor? He or she is still in the operating room. (informal respectful, regional: Tehran)
Standard counterparts use ایشان ... هستند / تماس میگیرند. Do not treat ایشون as formal spelling merely because its function is polite.
Formal plural and bureaucratic reference
In official prose, ایشان may refer back to one titled person respectfully or to several people. A well-edited document first names the referent and then uses the pronoun only while the reference stays unmistakable.
خانم رضایی درخواست را بررسی کردند. ایشان نتیجه را فردا اعلام میکنند.
khânom-e rezâyi darkhâst râ barrasi kardand. ishân natije râ fardâ e'lâm mi-konand.
Ms. Rezaei reviewed the request. She will announce the result tomorrow. (bureaucratic respectful singular)
If another singular dignitary or a plural group intervenes, repeat خانم رضایی rather than relying on ambiguous ایشان. Formality does not excuse unclear reference.
Reflexive and possessive forms
Respectful singular ایشان selects plural-indexed خودشان “themself/himself/herself” and possessive ـشان. This agreement belongs to the honorific system.
ایشان خودشان نامه را امضا کردند.
ishân khod-eshân nâme râ emzâ kardand.
He or she personally signed the letter. (respectful singular; plural-indexed emphatic reflexive)
پیشنهادشان را در جلسه مطرح کردند.
pishnehâd-eshân râ dar jalase matrah kardand.
He, she, or they presented the proposal at the meeting. (honorific singular or plural remains contextual)
The structure of خودشان is developed on خود as Reflexive Pronoun.
Common Mistakes
1. Giving respectful singular ایشان a singular verb
❌ ایشان فردا میآید.
Incorrect for deferential ایشان — respectful singular reference takes plural agreement.
✅ ایشان فردا میآیند.
ishân fardâ mi-âyand.
He or she is coming tomorrow. (respectful singular)
2. Using third-person ایشان for direct polite address
❌ ایشان آمادهاید؟
Incorrect person combination — direct polite address uses شما with second-plural agreement.
✅ شما آمادهاید؟
shomâ âmâde-id?
Are you ready? (direct polite address)
3. Using ایشان for a thing
❌ گزارش آماده است و ایشان روی میز است.
Incorrect — ایشان has human reference, not inanimate ‘it.’
✅ گزارش آماده است و روی میز است.
gozâresh âmâde ast va ru-ye miz ast.
The report is ready and is on the table. (recoverable inanimate subject omitted)
4. Using a first-person reflexive with ایشان
❌ ایشان خودم قرارداد را امضا کردند.
Incorrect indexation — honorific ایشان pairs with خودشان.
✅ ایشان خودشان قرارداد را امضا کردند.
ishân khod-eshân qarârdâd râ emzâ kardand.
He or she personally signed the contract.
Key Takeaways
- ایشان means formal plural “they” or respectful singular “he/she”; both trigger plural subject agreement.
- The pronoun is human-only and gender-neutral.
- Agreement follows grammatical role: نظر ایشان مهم است still has singular است because نظر is the subject.
- Address a respected listener with شما; refer to that person in the third person with ایشان.
- Colloquial Tehran ایشون is polite but not formal spelling, and ambiguous reference should be repaired by repeating a name or title.
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- Gender-Neutral اوA1 — Understand how او covers both he and she, how names and context supply gender, and why third-person agreement remains identical.
- تو versus شماA1 — Choose intimate singular تو or polite/plural شما, and keep second-person agreement consistent even when the pronoun is omitted.
- Plural and Colloquial Pronoun FormsA2 — Distinguish standard آنها and ایشان from demonstrative اینها and everyday Tehran اینا، اونا، and ایشون, with appropriate reference and agreement.
- خود as Reflexive PronounA2 — Build Persian reflexives with خود plus person-indexing clitics, distinguish reflexive from emphatic use, and interpret local and long-distance reference.
- Independent Object Pronouns with راA2 — Use an ordinary Persian personal pronoun followed by را for a specific direct object, with careful, colloquial, contrastive, and clitic alternatives.
- Honorific and Humble PredicatesB2 — Track whose status Persian raises or lowers through فرمودن, تشریف آوردن, عرض کردن, بنده, agreement, and institutional framing.