Word
آن کامپیوترها سالم نیست.
Meaning
Those computers are not working.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Questions & Answers about آن کامپیوترها سالم نیست.
How is the plural made in the word کامپیوترها?
It uses the regular plural suffix ها added to the end of the loanword کامپیوتر. You can add ها to almost any noun in Farsi to make it plural!
Why does the sentence start with آن meaning 'that', instead of a plural word for 'those'?
In Farsi, when a pointing word like این (this) or آن (that) comes right before a plural noun, it stays in its singular form. So, آن کامپیوترها literally translates to 'that computers' in English, but it means 'those computers'.
The subject is plural computers, so why is the verb نیست in the singular form instead of the plural form?
In Farsi, inanimate objects (things that aren't alive, like computers) usually take a singular verb, even when the noun itself is plural. So using the singular verb نیست (is not) is the standard and correct way to say this!
The word سالم usually means 'healthy'. How does it mean 'working' here?
While سالم does mean 'healthy' for living things, when you use it for objects and machines, it means 'undamaged' or 'in good working condition'. So a machine that is سالم نیست is broken or not working!