Breakdown of وقتی کسی در زد، داشتم در آشپزخانه ظرف میشستم.
درdar
in
داشتنdâshtan
to have
شستنshostan
to wash
ظرفzarf
dish
کسیkasi
someone, anyone
وقتیvaqti
when
آشپزخانهâshpazkhâne
kitchen
در زدنdar zadan
to knock
Questions & Answers about وقتی کسی در زد، داشتم در آشپزخانه ظرف میشستم.
How is the past progressive formed in this sentence?
To say you were in the middle of doing something, Farsi uses the past tense of dâshtan (to have) as a helper verb, plus the main verb in the past continuous tense. Here, dâshtam acts as the helper, and mi-shostam is the main verb. Together, they mean I was washing.
Why are dâshtam and mi-shostam separated from each other?
The helper verb dâshtam usually comes at the beginning of the clause, while the main verb mi-shostam stays at the very end of the sentence. Extra details like where it happened (dar âshpazkhâneh) and what you were washing (zarf) get sandwiched in between them.
Literally, what does dar zad mean?
It comes from the compound verb dar zadan, which literally translates to striking a door or hitting a door. In English, we just say knocked. Because it was a single completed action that interrupted what you were doing, it is in the simple past tense.
The English translation says dishes, but the Farsi word zarf is singular. Why is it not plural?
When talking about a general category or a routine activity like washing dishes, Farsi often keeps the noun singular. Using the plural zarfhâ would imply you were washing a specific, previously mentioned pile of dishes rather than just doing the general chore of dishwashing.
Learn وقتی کسی در زد، داشتم در آشپزخانه ظرف میشستم and more in Farsi
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free