Learn Farsi: کدام کیف را می‌خواهی، قهوه‌ای یا خاکستری؟ - Which bag do you want, the brown one or the gray one?

When using the question word kodâm (which), the noun that follows it must always be singular in Farsi. This is actually very similar to English, where we ask 'which bag' rather than 'which bags'.

Why is the object marker râ used after kif?

The word râ marks a specific direct object. Because kodâm asks about a specific item out of a group, the phrase kodâm kif (which bag) is considered definite. Therefore, we need râ to show it is the specific thing being wanted by the verb mi-khâhi (you want).

How does the sentence say 'the brown one' or 'the gray one' without using an extra word for 'one'?

In Farsi, you can use an adjective all by itself when the noun it describes is already understood from the context. You don't need to add a word like 'one' after the colors qahve'i (brown) and khâkestari (gray).

Is there a trick to remembering the words for brown (qahve'i) and gray (khâkestari)?

Yes! Many color words in Farsi are just a noun plus the suffix -i. Qahve means coffee, so qahve'i means coffee-colored (brown). Khâkestar means ash, making khâkestari mean ash-colored (gray).