Breakdown of در کودکی، من همیشه داستان میخواندم.
من
I
درdar
in
خواندنkhândan
to read / to study (a subject)
همیشهhamishe
always
Questions & Answers about در کودکی، من همیشه داستان میخواندم.
How is the verb میخواندم built, and why does it mean "used to read" instead of "was reading"?
میخواندم is in the Past Continuous tense. It is made of the prefix می (mi) + the past stem خواند (khând, from the verb meaning "to read") + the "I" ending م (-am). The Past Continuous is used for actions that were ongoing ("was reading") OR repeated in the past ("used to read"). Because of the word همیشه (always), "used to read" makes the most sense here.
Why is داستان translated as "stories" when it doesn't have a plural suffix?
In Farsi, when you talk about a general category of things as the object of a verb—like reading "stories" in general, rather than specific books—you usually just use the singular noun. While داستانها is grammatically fine, the singular داستان sounds more natural for this generic meaning.
How does the word کودکی translate to "childhood"?
The root word is کودک (kudak), which means "child". Adding the suffix ی (-i) to a noun or adjective often creates an abstract concept. So, "child" becomes "childhood". You will see this same suffix in words like خوبی (goodness) from خوب (good).
Can I drop the pronoun من (I) in this sentence?
Yes, absolutely! Because the verb ending م (-am) already tells us the subject is "I", the word من is optional. Including it just adds a little bit of emphasis or helps balance the sentence rhythm, but is perfectly correct.