The "Willy-Nilly" Construction
To express alternative conditions like "whether you do X or not," Farsi uses a very concise structure. You simply place the affirmative present subjunctive and the negative present subjunctive of the same verb right next to each other.
Crucially, you do not use any conjunctions (like "and" or "or") between the two verbs. For example, to say "whether you want to or not," take the subjunctive for "you want" (بخواهی) and immediately follow it with "you do not want" (نخواهی).
| Whether you want it or not, the strict trainer himself wears a tracksuit in this boot camp. | بخواهی نخواهی، مربی سختگیر خودش در این پادگان گرمکن میپوشد.bekhâhi nakhâhi, morabbi sakht-gir khodash dar in pâdegân garmkan mipushad. |
Mandatory Exercises
This structure works with any verb, not just "want." The pattern is always the same: affirmative subjunctive followed immediately by the negative subjunctive. Let's look at how this applies to verbs like "can" or "run" as you face a strict fitness regimen at a boot camp (پادگان).
| Whether you can or not, you must do sit-ups and push-ups. | بتوانی نتوانی، باید درازنشست انجام دهی و شنا بروی.betavâni natavâni, bâyad derâz-neshast anjâm dahi va shenâ beravi. |
| Whether you run or not, the trainer ruthlessly tires you out so that you pant. | بدوی ندوی، مربی بیرحمانه تو را خسته میکند تا نفسنفس بزنی.bedavi nadavi, morabbi bi-rahmâne to râ khaste mikonad tâ nafas-nafas bezani. |
| Whether you accept it or not, you yourself must pick up this heavy dumbbell so that your heartbeat goes up. | بپذیری نپذیری، خودت باید این دمبل سنگین را برداری تا ضربان قلبت بالا برود.bepaziri napaziri, khodat bâyad in dombel sangin râ bardâri tâ zarbân qalbat bâlâ beravad. |
Compound Verbs in Alternative Conditions
When you use this construction with compound verbs (verbs made of a noun or adjective plus a light verb like کردن or شدن), the subjunctive prefixes (بـ and نـ) attach only to the verbal part.
The non-verbal part of the compound verb only appears once, at the very beginning of the phrase. For example, for "whether they rest or not," the non-verbal part (استراحت) comes first, followed by the affirmative and negative subjunctives of کردن.
| Whether they rest or not, their heartbeat goes up and they sweat heavily. | استراحت بکنند نکنند، ضربان آنها بالا میرود و عرق میریزند.esterâhat bekonand nakonand, zarabân ânhâ bâlâ miravad va araq mirizand. |