Expressing Exclusivity with "تنها" and "صرفاً"
When talking about minimalism (سادهزیستی), you often need to express that you do only one thing or keep exclusively certain items. In Farsi, you can express this emphatic restriction using the adverbs تنها and صرفاً.
Both words mean "solely," "exclusively," or "only." They are placed before the noun or verb phrase they restrict and are naturally paired with affirmative verbs.
| I exclusively read books about simple living. | من صرفاً کتابهایی دربارهی سادهزیستی میخوانم.man sarfan ketâb-hâyi darbâre-ye sâde-zisti mikhânam. |
| My sister exclusively buys practical clothes. | خواهر من صرفاً لباسهای کاربردی میخرد.khâhar-e man serfan lebâs-hâ-ye kârbordi mikharad. |
You can use تنها in the exact same way to emphasize that an action or object is the only one of its kind in a given situation:
| We solely rest in this room. | ما در این اتاق تنها استراحت میکنیم.mâ dar in otâq tanhâ esterâhat mikonim. |
| I solely keep practical items in the kitchen. | من تنها وسایل کاربردی را در آشپزخانه نگه میدارم.man tanhâ vasâyel-e kârbordi râ dar âshpazkhâne negah midâram. |
Decluttering Your Space
Applying this grammar to home organization, you will frequently pair these adverbs of exclusivity with vocabulary for removing extra items (وسایل اضافی) and eliminating clutter (آشفتگی).
| We must get rid of extra items. | ما باید از وسایل اضافی خلاص شویم.mâ bâyad az vasâyel-e ezâfi khalâs shavim. |
| He solely complains about the clutter. | او تنها از آشفتگی شکایت میکند.u tanhâ az âshoftegi shekâyat mikonad |
Once you stop hoarding (انباشتن) and throw away the excess, you can focus exclusively on keeping the essentials (ضروریات).
| I love simplicity, so I exclusively keep the essentials. | من سادگی را دوست دارم، پس صرفاً ضروریات را نگه میدارم.man sâdegi râ dust dâram, pas serfan zaruriyyât râ negah midâram. |
| Even though they have hoarded many items, they solely use the essentials. | با اینکه آنها وسایل زیادی را انباشتهاند، تنها از ضروریات استفاده میکنند.bâ inke ânhâ vasâyel ziyâdi râ anbâshte-and, tanhâ az zaruriyât estefâde mikonand. |