Questions & Answers about یک قهوهی گرم، لطفاً.
Does yek mean "one" or "a" in this sentence?
It can mean both! In Farsi, the number yek (one) is often used to mean "a" or "an". So yek ghahve can be translated as "a coffee" or "one coffee" depending on the context. Here, you are asking for "a" warm coffee.
Why is there an extra letter ی attached to the end of ghahve (coffee)?
That is the ezāfe, the invisible linking sound that connects a noun to its adjective. Usually, it is just an "e" sound. But because ghahve ends in a vowel sound (written with the silent ه), we add a "ye" sound to make it flow smoothly. So it is written as قهوهی and pronounced ghahve-ye garm.
Why does yek (a/one) come before the noun, while the adjective garm (warm) comes after it?
In Farsi, numbers (and the word yek when used as "a" or "an") always go before the noun they are modifying. Adjectives, however, almost always go after the noun, connected by the ezāfe. That is why we say yek (a) followed by ghahve-ye (coffee) followed by garm (warm).
What is the double-dash symbol over the last letter in lotfan (please)?
That symbol is called tanvin, an accent mark borrowed from Arabic. It is always written over the letter الف (alef) at the end of a word, and it makes an "an" sound. That is why لطفاً is pronounced lotfan.
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