Doubling Adjectives for Intensity
To express the absolute extreme of an adjective—like saying "pitch black" instead of just "black"—Farsi uses a simple repetition trick. You double the adjective and link the two identical words together using the ezafe connector.
| This passage is pitch black, and we must use the torch. | این دالان تاریک تاریک است و باید از مشعل استفاده کنیم.in dâlân târik târik ast va bâyad az mash'al estefâde konim. |
Extreme Conditions
This doubling pattern is very common with sensory adjectives, especially when describing intense or harsh environments.
| The endless pit is freezing cold and full of stalactites. | گودال بیانتها سرد سرد و پر از قندیل است.gowdâl bi-entehâ sard sard va por az qandil ast. |
| Their passage is extremely narrow, and they are supposed to crawl. | دالانشان تنگ تنگ است و قرار است که بخزند.dâlâneshân tang tang ast o qarâr ast ke bekhazand. |
Adjectives Ending in Vowels
Just like regular noun-adjective pairs, if the adjective you are doubling ends in a vowel, the ezafe between them takes a y sound. For example, the adjective "empty" (خالی) becomes "totally empty" when doubled (خالی خالی).
| This cave is totally empty, and you only hear the echo. | این غار خالی خالی است و فقط پژواک را میشنوید.in ghâr khâli khâli ast va faghat pazhvâk râ mishenavid. |
Bringing It All Together
You can use these reduplicated adjectives just like any regular adjective in a sentence, whether modifying a noun directly or describing the state of something.
| This endless cave is pitch black, and a pitch-black spider is on the torch. | این غار بیانتها تاریک تاریک است و یک عنکبوت سیاه سیاه روی مشعل است.in ghâr-e bi-entehâ târik târik ast va yek ankabut-e siyâh siyâh ru-ye mash'al ast. |
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