Negative Imperative with ن | Farsi Grammar

The modern Persian negative imperative—traditionally also called the preventive—uses نـ + present stem, with no affirmative بـ and no می‌: برو → نرو “don’t go,” بخوان → نخوان “don’t read.” Familiar singular has no ending; plural or polite address adds ـید: نروید، نخوانید.

This form tells an addressee not to begin, continue, or repeat an action. It therefore differs from indicative نمی‌روی “you do not go,” which reports a fact or habit rather than issuing a prohibition.

Replace affirmative بـ with negative نـ

For a simple verb, retrieve the present stem and attach نـ. Do not keep affirmative بـ beside it.

Infinitive	Present stem	Affirmative singular	Negative singular	Negative plural/polite
رفتن	رو	برو	نرو	نروید
خواندن	خوان	بخوان	نخوان	نخوانید
گرفتن	گیر	بگیر	نگیر	نگیرید
نشستن	نشین	بنشین	ننشین	ننشینید

به سیم لخت دست نزن!

be sim-e lokht dast nazan!

Don't touch the exposed wire! (urgent familiar singular warning)

این پیام را برای کسی نفرست.

in payâm râ barâ-ye kasi naferest.

Don't send this message to anyone. (familiar singular; neutral standard)

در طول جلسه تلفن‌هایتان را روشن نگذارید.

dar tul-e jalase telefon-hâ-yetân râ rowshan nagozârid.

Do not leave your phones on during the meeting. (plural formal instruction)

The negative prefix normally bears the main stress of a simple command: نَرَو، نَخْوَان، نَگِیر. It is pronounced na-, not the ne- heard at the start of many indicative forms with نمی‌. Spelling does not show this stress distinction.

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Think “replace,” not “add.” Positive بگیر becomes negative نگیر: affirmative بـ leaves the prefix slot when prohibitive نـ enters.

Negative imperative versus negative indicative

English don’t appears in both a prohibition and some present-tense descriptions. Persian keeps the two functions morphologically distinct.

Function	Form	Example meaning
negative statement	نمی‌روی	you do not go / are not going
negative familiar command	نرو	do not go
negative polite/plural command	نروید	do not go

وقتی رانندگی می‌کنی، به پیام‌ها جواب نده.

vaqti rânandegi mi-koni, be payâm-hâ javâb nade.

When you're driving, don't reply to messages. (familiar singular advice)

امروز از این مسیر نرو؛ خیابان بسته است.

emruz az in masir naro; khiyâbân baste ast.

Don't take this route today; the street is closed. (familiar singular warning)

The plural/polite نروید is formally identical to a second-plural negative subjunctive. Clause type and context separate them: independent نروید! is a directive; بهتر است نروید “it is better that you not go” is licensed by the evaluative expression. See Negative Present Subjunctive for that embedded use.

Compound verbs: negate the light verb

In a compound predicate, نـ attaches to the present stem of the light verb: فراموش نکن، تصمیم نگیر، تماس نگیر، آماده نشو. The noun or adjective is not itself prefixed.

نسخه‌ی اصلی را از روی رایانه پاک نکن.

noskhe-ye asli râ az ru-ye râyâne pâk nakon.

Don't delete the original copy from the computer. (familiar singular; compound کردن)

پیش از خواندن کل گزارش تصمیم نگیرید.

pish az khândan-e koll-e gozâresh tasmim nagirid.

Do not decide before reading the entire report. (polite/plural standard)

برای رسیدن به قطار عجله نکن؛ هنوز وقت داریم.

barâ-ye residan be qatâr ajale nakon; hanuz vaqt dârim.

Don't rush to catch the train; we still have time. (familiar singular reassurance)

Affirmative بـ can be absent in neutral باز کن and آماده شو, but negative نـ cannot simply disappear: باز نکن، آماده نشو. It is the only overt marker that makes the clause prohibitive.

Lexical preverbs and vowel-initial stems

With a lexical preverb, negation appears inside the complex verb, between preverb and stem: برگرد → برنگرد, بردار → برندار. Placing نـ before the whole word produces the wrong modern form.

بدون هماهنگی به ساختمان برنگرد.

bedun-e hamâhangi be sâkhtemân bar-na-gard.

Don't return to the building without coordinating first. (familiar singular; lexical preverb)

آن پوشه را از قفسه برندارید.

ân pushe râ az qafase bar-na-dârid.

Do not take that folder off the shelf. (polite/plural standard)

Vowel-initial stems have conventional shapes: بیا → نیا، بیاور → نیاور، بیفت → نیفت. The initial ی manages the vowel junction; there is still no ZWNJ or space inside the verb.

Force, courtesy, and alternatives

A bare prohibition can be exactly right on a safety sign or in an emergency. In a delicate request it may sound controlling. Polite agreement, خواهش می‌کنم, an explanation, or a positive alternative reduces that force.

خواهش می‌کنم جلوی ورودی توقف نکنید.

khâhesh mi-konam jelow-e vorudi tavaqqof nakonid.

Please do not stop in front of the entrance. (polite standard)

روی چمن راه نروید؛ از مسیر سنگ‌فرش بیایید.

ru-ye chaman râh naravid; az masir-e sang-farsh biyâyid.

Please don't walk on the grass; use the paved path. (public instruction with a positive alternative)

The conventional softener لطفاً is common in edited notices and لطفا is frequent in everyday typing. It is pronounced lotfan as a lexicalized Persian adverb; learners should not infer a productive Arabic case or adverbial-ending system from it. In speech, خواهش می‌کنم often supplies a clearer courtesy frame.

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Grammar and social force are separate. نکنید is grammatically respectful because it agrees with شما, yet a reason or courtesy expression may still be needed if the prohibition threatens the addressee’s autonomy.

Register and the older مـ form

Modern Iranian Persian normally uses نـ. Commands such as مرو and مگو occur in classical poetry, elevated quotation, and consciously archaizing prose (literary, archaic). They are important for reading but not a productive substitute for نرو، نگو in contemporary conversation.

Everyday Tehran speech (informal, regional: Tehran) reduces plural ـید to ـین: نروید → نرین، نکنید → نکنین. Singular نرو، نکن remain common. Do not mix the spoken ending with a formal stem-and-ending sequence.

A short exchange

این شیرینی‌ها را نخور؛ برای مهمان‌هاست.

in shirini-hâ râ nakhor; barâ-ye mehmân-hâ-st.

Don't eat these sweets; they're for the guests. (familiar singular)

نگران نباش، فقط یکی برداشتم.

negarân nabâsh, faqat yeki bar-dâshtam.

Don't worry; I only took one. (familiar singular response)

Common Mistakes

1. Using نمی‌ for a direct prohibition

❌ اینجا نمی‌نشین.

Incorrect for the intended command — نمی‌ belongs to the indicative, not the negative imperative.

✅ روی این صندلی ننشین؛ پایه‌اش شکسته است.

ru-ye in sandali naneshin; pâye-ash shekaste ast.

Don't sit on this chair; its leg is broken.

2. Keeping both affirmative and negative prefixes

❌ بعد از نیمه‌شب نبرو.

Incorrect — نـ replaces affirmative بـ; the form is نرو.

✅ بعد از نیمه‌شب تنها نرو.

ba'd az nime-shab tanhâ naro.

Don't go alone after midnight.

3. Separating نـ from a light verb

❌ هنوز تصمیم ن بگیر.

Incorrect — نـ is a bound prefix attached to the present stem گیر.

✅ تا همه نرسیده‌اند تصمیم نگیر.

tâ hame na-reside-and tasmim nagir.

Don't decide until everyone has arrived.

4. Putting negation before the lexical preverb

❌ آن جعبه را نبردار.

Incorrect in modern standard Persian — the lexical preverb برـ precedes negation: برندار.

✅ جعبه‌ی سنگین را به‌تنهایی برندار.

ja'be-ye sangin râ be-tanhâyi bar-na-dâr.

Don't lift the heavy box by yourself.

5. Using a singular prohibition with polite شما

❌ شما به این شماره زنگ نزن.

Incorrect in the intended polite address — شما requires the ـید ending.

✅ شما تا فردا به این شماره زنگ نزنید.

shomâ tâ fardâ be in shomâre zang nazanid.

Please don't call this number until tomorrow. (polite singular)

Key Takeaways

Negative commands use نـ + present stem, not نمی‌ and not نـ + بـ.
Familiar singular has no ending; plural or polite address adds ـید.
In compound verbs, negation attaches to the light verb: تصمیم نگیر، باز نکن.
Lexical preverbs remain outside negation: برنگرد، برندار.
Bare prohibitions vary from urgent warnings to blunt orders; courtesy expressions and positive alternatives adjust their social force.

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