Expressing Obligation: مجبور بودن
To express that someone is forced, obliged, or compelled to do something, use the compound verb مجبور بودن (to be forced/obliged).
| to be forced/obliged | مجبور بودنmajbur budan |
To build a sentence, conjugate بودن for the person who is obligated, add the connector که (that), and place the main action verb in the Present Subjunctive.
| Instead of getting a loan, you are forced to endure this situation. | به جای گرفتن وام، تو مجبور هستی که این شرایط را تحمل کنی.be jâ-ye gereftan-e vâm, to majbur hasti ke in sharâyet râ tahammol koni. |
| They received a warning, so they are obliged to change their method. | آنها اخطار گرفتند، پس مجبور هستند که شیوهی خود را تغییر دهند.ânhâ ekhtâr gereftand, pas majbur hastand ke shive-ye khod râ taghyir dahand. |
Becoming Forced: مجبور شدن
To emphasize a change in circumstances—where someone becomes forced to do something due to an emergency, an ultimatum, or a new rule—use مجبور شدن instead.
| to become forced/obliged | مجبور شدنmajbur shodan |
The sentence structure remains exactly the same: the second verb still takes the Present Subjunctive.
| In the emergency room, the doctor is forced to start the surgery. | در اورژانس، دکتر مجبور میشود که جراحی را شروع کند.dar orzhâns, doktor majbur mishavad ke jarrâhi râ shoru' konad. |
| How long does it take until we are forced to sell the car? | چقدر طول میکشد تا ما مجبور شویم که ماشین را بفروشیم؟cheqadr tul mikeshad tâ mâ majbur shavim ke mâshin râ beforushim? |
Past Obligations
When talking about an unavoidable situation in the past, conjugate مجبور شدن (or مجبور بودن) in the past tense. Because the action you were forced to do was a pending event from that past perspective, the main action verb stays in the Present Subjunctive.
| We were forced to take the patient to the emergency room by ambulance. | ما مجبور شدیم که بیمار را با آمبولانس به اورژانس ببریم.mâ majbur shodim ke bimâr râ bâ âmbulâns be urjâns bebarim. |
| Nobody saw him, but he was forced to confess about that incident. | هیچکس او را ندید، اما مجبور شد که دربارهی آن ماجرا اعتراف کند.hich-kas u râ nadid, ammâ majbur shod ke darbâre-ye ân mâjarâ e'terâf konad. |
In Spoken Persian
In casual conversation, these sentences undergo the usual spoken shifts. For example, میشود is shortened to میشه، the object marker را becomes رو، and subjunctive verbs drop their final د.
| He is forced to cancel the flight. | اون مجبور میشه که پرواز رو لغو کنه.un majbur mishe ke parvâz ro laghv kone. |