Several Persian verbs begin with an old spatial element such as برـ، درـ، بازـ، فراـ or فروـ. In برگشتن “return,” درآمدن “come out; turn out,” and برخاستن “rise,” that element is a preverb: it belongs to the lexical verb. Yet aspect and negation can appear between the preverb and the stem, producing برمیگردم “I return” and برنمیگردم “I do not return.”
“Separable” therefore has a limited morphological meaning. The preverb is not a free word that can wander through the clause as German or English particles sometimes do. It remains at the left edge of its verb while Persian verbal prefixes occupy the slot immediately before the stem.
Three core lexical verbs
Each preverb-plus-verb combination must be stored with its own past and present stems.
| Infinitive | Past stem | Present base | Present indicative | Core meaning/register |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| برگشتن | برگشت | بر + گرد | برمیگردد | return; neutral and frequent |
| درآمدن | درآمد | در + آ | درمیآید | come out, emerge, turn out; meaning is lexical |
| برخاستن | برخاست | بر + خیز | برمیخیزد | rise; (formal/literary) in many modern contexts |
مهسا فردا از سفر برمیگردد.
Mahsâ fardâ az safar bar-mi-gardad.
Mahsa returns from her trip tomorrow.
این کشو بهسختی از جایش درمیآید.
in keshu be-sakhti az jâ-yash dar-mi-âyad.
This drawer comes out of its place only with difficulty.
با ورود قاضی، همه از جا برخاستند.
bâ vorud-e ghâzi, hame az jâ bar-khâstand.
When the judge entered, everyone rose. (formal)
The preverbs retain broad spatial associations—برـ often suggests up, out, or back, and درـ may suggest in or out—but modern meanings cannot be calculated from those associations alone. درآمدن can mean “come out,” “fit,” “turn out,” or occur in idioms; context selects the lexical sense.
Where می and نمی go
In an ordinary simple verb, می precedes the present stem: میروم. With these preverbs, the preverb comes first, and می appears directly before the stem: بر + می + گردم. Standard spelling joins the preverb to می and uses the normal ZWNJ between می and the stem.
| Category | برگشتن | درآمدن | برخاستن |
|---|---|---|---|
| present indicative | برمیگردم | درمیآیم | برمیخیزم |
| negative present | برنمیگردم | درنمیآیم | برنمیخیزم |
| subjunctive | برگردم | درآیم | برخیزم |
| negative subjunctive | برنگردم | درنیایم | برنخیزم |
تا کارم تمام نشود، به خانه برنمیگردم.
tâ kâr-am tamâm na-shavad, be khâne bar-ne-mi-gardam.
I won't return home until my work is finished.
این لکه با آب سرد درنمیآید.
in lakke bâ âb-e sard dar-ne-mi-âyad.
This stain won't come out with cold water.
The negative prefix نـ follows the preverb but precedes می: برنمیگردد, not نبرمیگردد. In the subjunctive and imperative, an extra بـ is normally absent because the lexical preverb already occupies the preverbal position: برگرد, not *ببرگرد.
لطفا قبل از تاریکی برگردید.
lotfan ghabl az târiki bar-gardid.
Please return before dark.
بهتر است قطعه را آرام بیرون بکشید تا سالم درآید.
behtar ast ghet'e râ ârâm birun be-keshid tâ sâlem dar-âyad.
It is better to pull the piece out gently so that it comes out intact.
Past and perfect forms
The simple past contains no می, so the preverb and past stem appear together: برگشتم، درآمد، برخاستند. The past imperfective inserts می as usual: برمیگشتم، درمیآمد، برمیخاستند. In the perfect, the participle is built from the complete past stem: برگشتهام، درآمده است، برخاستهاند.
وقتی تماس گرفتی، داشتم از اداره برمیگشتم.
vaghti tamâs gerefti, dâshtam az edâre bar-mi-gashtam.
When you called, I was returning from the office.
نتیجهی آزمایش بهتر از انتظار درآمده است.
natije-ye âzmâyesh behtar az entezâr dar-âmade ast.
The test result has turned out better than expected.
Perfect negation again follows the preverb: برنگشتهام، درنیامده است، برنخاستهاند. The negative belongs inside the participle, not on the copula.
نادر هنوز از جلسه برنگشته است.
Nâder hanuz az jalase bar-na-gashte ast.
Nader has not returned from the meeting yet.
The complete prefix-and-stem architecture is reviewed on how a Persian verb is built.
Lexical preverb versus free preposition or adverb
The same written material can have a separate grammatical life. In در اتاق ماندم, در is a preposition meaning “in” and takes the noun phrase اتاق. In از قالب درآمد, درـ is part of درآمدن. Removing or moving it changes the verb.
من در سالن ماندم، اما بقیه از ساختمان درآمدند.
man dar sâlon mândam, ammâ baghiyye az sâkhtemân dar-âmadand.
I stayed in the hall, but the others came out of the building.
The first در is a separate preposition. The second belongs to the finite verb درآمدند. Ordinary spacing reflects the distinction.
English particles can sometimes move: take the box out / take out the box. Persian lexical preverbs do not alternate that way. Other constituents may occur earlier in the clause, but nothing turns برگشتن into a freely split phrase بر ... گشتن in contemporary standard grammar.
Lexicalization and register
Even transparent-looking preverbs form stored verbs. برگشتن is neutral and extremely frequent. درآمدن is common, but its exact meaning is idiomatic: نتیجه بهتر از انتظار درآمد “the result turned out better than expected” is not predicted by a simple spatial gloss. برخاستن remains standard in news, ceremonial description, and literary prose, while everyday conversation normally prefers بلند شدن “get up.”
رئیس شورا از جا برخاست و جلسه را ترک کرد.
ra'is-e shurâ az jâ bar-khâst va jalase râ tark kard.
The council chair rose and left the meeting. (formal narrative)
سام گفت: «کی برمیگردی؟» گفتم: «اگه کار زود تموم بشه، تا هشت برمیگردم.»
Sâm goft: «key bar-mi-gardi?» goftam: «age kâr zud tamum beshe, tâ hasht bar-mi-gardam.»
Sam said, “When are you coming back?” I said, “If work finishes early, I'll be back by eight.” (informal: Tehran)
The dialogue keeps the standard spelling of برمیگردم while marking colloquial grammar in اگه، تموم، بشه. Spoken Persian frequently writes the preverb and finite complex in this same joined form.
Common Mistakes
Putting می before the preverb
❌ فردا میبرگردم.
Incorrect — with برگشتن, the lexical preverb بر precedes می.
✅ فردا بعد از ظهر برمیگردم.
✅ fardâ ba'd az zohr bar-mi-gardam.
I'll return tomorrow afternoon.
Negating outside the lexical preverb
❌ امشب نبرمیگردیم.
Incorrect — negation follows بر and precedes می.
✅ امشب به هتل برنمیگردیم.
✅ emshab be hotel bar-ne-mi-gardim.
We're not returning to the hotel tonight.
Adding a second subjunctive prefix
❌ باید زود ببرگردی.
Incorrect — the lexical بر remains, but برگشتن does not add another بـ here.
✅ باید پیش از شروع جلسه برگردی.
✅ bâyad pish az shoru'-e jalase bar-gardi.
You must return before the meeting begins.
Using the past stem in a present form
❌ او هر روز برمیگشتد.
Incorrect — present برگشتن uses گرد, not past stem گشت.
✅ او هر روز برای ناهار برمیگردد.
✅ u har ruz barâ-ye nâhâr bar-mi-gardad.
He or she returns for lunch every day.
Key Takeaways
- A lexical preverb belongs to its verb, but می and نـ can intervene before the stem.
- Learn complete stem pairs: برگشت / برگرد, درآمد / درآ, برخاست / برخیز.
- Use برمیگردم، برنمیگردم، برگردم، برنگردم; do not add a second بـ.
- Distinguish joined lexical درآمدن from separate prepositional در + noun.
- Preverb meanings are partly historical and lexical, and register differs across verbs.
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Start learning Farsi →Related Topics
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- Present Subjunctive FormationA2 — Form the Persian present subjunctive with بـ, the present stem, and personal endings, including vowel allomorphy, preverbs, compounds, irregulars, and stress.
- Negative Present with نمیA1 — Negate Persian present verbs with نمی, place it correctly in simple and compound predicates, and use negative indefinites without English interference.
- The Full Causative ParadigmB1 — Conjugate established Persian morphological causatives across past, present, subjunctive, imperative, perfect, future, and passive forms while tracking valency.
- در، به، از، با، برایA1 — Use the five core Persian prepositions for location, destination, source, accompaniment, and beneficiary, with clear standard and colloquial contrasts.