Packaging Information in Formal Prose | Farsi Grammar

Formal Persian often packages an event as a noun, removes an already known agent with a passive, and connects several nouns through ezâfe. These resources let a writer make the result or procedure the grammatical topic. Used without control, however, they bury actors, overload working memory, and leave the reader waiting too long for the finite verb.

Effective formal prose therefore alternates dense and explicit structures. Package information that is already established; give new actions a finite verb; name an agent when responsibility matters; and use discourse markers to tell the reader how each sentence advances the argument.

Four packaging choices

Choice	Useful when	Main risk	Typical register
verbal noun	an event becomes the topic or a technical process	actor and time disappear	(formal/academic)
passive	result or procedure matters more than agent	responsibility becomes vague	neutral formal/academic
ezâfe chain	known concepts form one precise noun phrase	attachment becomes hard to recover	all writing; densest in formal prose
discourse marker	the relation to the previous sentence must be explicit	formulaic clutter if overused	formal/academic

English formal style also favors nominalizations and passives, so English speakers may feel at home with the density. The transfer problem lies in copying long English noun piles. Persian must express relations through ezâfe, prepositions, or finite clauses; a row of bare nouns does not become a compound automatically.

Nominalize a known process, not every action

Persian verbal nouns such as بررسی “examination,” افزایش “increase,” and کاهش “reduction” let an event function as a subject, object, or prepositional complement. They are useful when the process is already known and the sentence comments on its timing, method, or outcome.

بررسی درخواست‌ها تا پایان ماه ادامه خواهد داشت.

barrasi-ye darkhâst-hâ tâ pâyân-e mâh edâme khâhad dâsht.

The review of the applications will continue until the end of the month. (formal administrative; the process is the topic)

پس از بررسی درخواست‌ها، کمیته فهرست نهایی را منتشر می‌کند.

pas az barrasi-ye darkhâst-hâ, komite fehrest-e nehâyi râ montasher mi-konad.

After reviewing the applications, the committee will publish the final list. (plain formal; finite main action and named agent)

The second version uses one compact background nominalization, then restores کمیته and a finite verb for the new event. This creates a clear information path: known procedure → responsible actor → new result.

💡

A nominalization is most readable when the reader already knows the event. If the event is new, disputed, or time-sensitive, a finite clause usually communicates it more honestly.

Passive voice changes the topic

The Persian passive commonly uses a past participle plus a form of شدن. It places the affected entity in subject position and backgrounds the agent. This is appropriate for standardized procedures, results, and situations where the agent is unknown or irrelevant.

نمونه‌ها در دمای ثابت نگهداری شدند.

nemune-hâ dar damâ-ye sâbet negahdâri shodand.

The samples were kept at a constant temperature. (academic method; procedure-centered passive)

هیئت داوری سه مقاله را از مرحله‌ی نهایی کنار گذاشت.

hey'at-e dâvari se maqâle râ az marhale-ye nehâyi kenâr gozâsht.

The judging panel removed three articles from the final stage. (formal active; responsibility is relevant)

An agentless passive equivalent of the second example would conceal who made a consequential decision. Passive is not more “academic” by default; it is a choice about information structure. When an agent phrase with توسط becomes long and important, an active sentence is usually clearer.

Control long ezâfe chains

Ezâfe builds precise nominal groups from a head followed by possessors and modifiers. Readers process such a chain from the head outward, but a chain containing several equally new abstract nouns can remain ambiguous until its end.

گزارش ارزیابی کیفیت خدمات درمانی استان منتشر شد.

gozâresh-e arzyâbi-ye keyfiyyat-e khedamât-e darmâni-ye ostân montasher shod.

The report evaluating the quality of the province's health services was published. (formal; dense but recoverable ezâfe chain)

استان گزارشی درباره‌ی کیفیت خدمات درمانی منتشر کرد.

ostân gozâreshi darbâre-ye keyfiyyat-e khedamât-e darmâni montasher kard.

The province published a report on the quality of health services. (plain formal revision; relation expressed with درباره‌ی)

The revision is not automatically more accurate: it changes “the province's health services” into a broader “health services.” Editing density requires preserving semantic attachment. Useful tools are درباره‌ی، برای، در زمینه‌ی، مربوط به, a relative clause, or a new sentence—not simply deleting nouns.

For the internal structure of such phrases, see Nominal Density in Academic Prose.

💡

After three or four abstract ezâfe links, ask whether one relation can become a prepositional phrase or clause. Break the chain where the semantic relation changes, not at an arbitrary word count.

Discourse markers tell the reader what the package does

Formal markers should encode a real relation. ازاین‌رو introduces a consequence, بااین‌حال a counterexpectation, افزون بر این an addition, and به عبارت دیگر a reformulation. They normally stand near the beginning of the sentence and are followed by a comma in careful prose.

پاسخ‌ها از نظر سنی متوازن نبودند؛ ازاین‌رو، نتایج را نمی‌توان به کل جمعیت تعمیم داد.

pâsokh-hâ az nazar-e senni motavâzen na-budand; az-in-ru, natâyej râ nemi-tavân be koll-e jam'iyyat ta'mim dâd.

The responses were not balanced by age; therefore, the results cannot be generalized to the whole population. (academic; evidence followed by consequence)

روش پیشنهادی کم‌هزینه است؛ بااین‌حال، اجرای آن به آموزش کارکنان نیاز دارد.

ravesh-e pishnehâdi kam-hazine ast; bâ-in-hâl, ejrâ-ye ân be âmuzesh-e kârkonân niyâz dârad.

The proposed method is inexpensive; nevertheless, implementing it requires staff training. (formal; concession)

The semicolon helps because each side could stand as a sentence. A comma alone should not be asked to hold together several independent, heavily nominalized clauses.

Keep the finite verb within reach

Persian predicates naturally occur late, but readers still need a manageable path to them. A very heavy subject plus several parenthetical phrases can overload the clause. Move genuine background into an opening frame, or divide one sentence into two.

با توجه به محدودیت زمانی، گروه پژوهش بخش کیفی مطالعه را به مرحله‌ی بعد منتقل کرد.

bâ tavajjoh be mahdudiyyat-e zamâni, goruh-e pazhuhesh bakhsh-e keyfi-ye motâle'e râ be marhale-ye ba'd montaqel kard.

Given the time constraint, the research group moved the qualitative part of the study to the next phase. (clear academic prose)

این تصمیم دو پیامد داشت. نخست، زمان گردآوری داده‌ها افزایش یافت؛ دوم، هزینه‌ی اجرا کمتر شد.

in tasmim do payâmad dâsht. nokhost, zamân-e gerdâvari-ye dâde-hâ afzâyesh yâft; dovvom, hazine-ye ejrâ kamtar shod.

This decision had two consequences. First, data-collection time increased; second, implementation cost fell. (formal; list structure reduces clause load)

Numbered discourse structure is not simplistic. It is often the most accurate way to prevent two consequences from being misread as a causal chain.

A short editorial exchange

— چرا این بند را به دو جمله تقسیم کردی؟ — چون تصمیم‌گیرنده و پیامد تصمیم در جمله‌ی اول روشن نبود.

— cherâ in band râ be do jomle taqsim kardi? — chun tasmim-girande va payâmad-e tasmim dar jomle-ye avval rowshan na-bud.

— Why did you split this paragraph into two sentences? — Because the decision-maker and the consequence of the decision were unclear in the first sentence. (formal editorial conversation)

Common Mistakes

1. Copying an English noun pile

❌ برنامه کاهش مصرف انرژی دانشگاه اجرا شد.

Incorrectly packaged — without the required ezâfe links, the relations among the nouns are unclear.

✅ برنامه‌ی دانشگاه برای کاهش مصرف انرژی اجرا شد.

barnâme-ye dâneshgâh barâ-ye kâhesh-e masraf-e enerzhi ejrâ shod.

The university's program for reducing energy consumption was implemented.

2. Blending two passive constructions

❌ درخواست مورد بررسی شد انجام گرفت.

Incorrect — مورد بررسی قرار گرفت and بررسی شد have been merged.

✅ درخواست در جلسه‌ی امروز بررسی شد.

darkhâst dar jalase-ye emruz barrasi shod.

The application was reviewed at today's meeting.

3. Using توسط where an active subject is clearer

❌ حذف بودجه توسط مدیر تصمیم گرفت.

Incorrect — توسط cannot serve as the subject of active تصمیم گرفت, and the packaging hides the decision-maker.

✅ مدیر تصمیم گرفت بودجه‌ی تبلیغات را کاهش دهد.

modir tasmim gereft budje-ye tablighât râ kâhesh dahad.

The manager decided to reduce the advertising budget.

4. Choosing a discourse marker with the wrong relation

❌ داده‌ها ناقص بود؛ بنابراین اما تحلیل متوقف شد.

Incorrect — بنابراین and اما signal incompatible relations and cannot be stacked this way.

✅ داده‌ها ناقص بود؛ بنابراین، تحلیل متوقف شد.

dâde-hâ nâqes bud; banâbar-in, tahlil motavaqqef shod.

The data were incomplete; therefore, the analysis was stopped.

Key Takeaways

Nominalize established processes; give important new actions finite verbs.
Use passive voice to foreground a procedure or result, not simply to sound formal.
Break long ezâfe chains where the semantic relation changes.
Choose discourse markers for consequence, concession, addition, or reformulation precisely.
Name actors when agency or responsibility is part of the information.

Now practice Farsi

Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.

Start learning Farsi →