Infinitives as Verbal Nouns
In Farsi, the infinitive form of a verb (ending in دن or تن) doubles as a verbal noun, or gerund. It translates to the "-ing" form in English, like "sleeping" or "going," allowing you to talk about the action itself.
To talk about the act of not doing something, simply attach the negative prefix نـ to the beginning of the infinitive. For example, خوابیدن (to sleep) becomes نخوابیدن (not sleeping) and رفتن (to go) becomes نرفتن (not going).
| Is not sleeping a kind of asceticism? | آیا نخوابیدن یک جور ریاضت است؟âyâ nakhâbidan yek jur riyâzat ast? |
| Since the monks live in the temple, not going to the city is easy for them. | از آنجا که راهبها در معبد زندگی میکنند، نرفتن به شهر برای آنها آسان است.az ânjâ ke râheb-hâ dar ma'bad zendegi mikonand, naraftan be shahr barâye ânhâ âsân ast. |
Negating Compound Verbs
With compound verbs, attach the negative prefix directly to the verbal part, leaving the non-verbal half untouched.
| Their spiritual vow is not speaking with anyone. | عهد معنوی آنها، حرف نزدن با هیچکس است.ahd-e ma'naviye ânhâ, harf nazadan bâ hich-kas ast |
| Meditation and not thinking about problems are the daily routine of this temple. | مراقبه و فکر نکردن به مشکلات، برنامه روزانه این معبد است.morâqebe va fekr nakardan be moshkelât, barnâme-ye ruzâne-ye in ma'bad ast. |
Using Negative Infinitives in Context
Since these negative infinitives act as regular nouns, they can play any standard noun role in a sentence. They are especially useful after prepositions (like "by," "about," or "for") to explain how or why something is achieved, or coupled with "to be" (است) to define a rule or vow.
| Let's find spiritual liberation today by not working. | بیایید امروز با کار نکردن، رهایی معنوی را پیدا کنیم.biyâyid emruz bâ kâr nakardan, rahâyi ma'navi râ peydâ konim. |
| He wrote a book about not eating meat. | او در مورد گوشت نخوردن یک کتاب نوشت.u dar mowred gusht nakhordan yek ketâb nevesht. |
| The room in which he prays is for not hearing the outside chaos. | اتاقی که در آن دعا میکند، برای نشنیدن آشوب بیرون است.otâghi ke dar ân do'â mikonad, barâye nashenidan-e âshub-e birun ast. |
