Breakdown of زمانی که بذرها را میکاریم، باید آنها را آبیاری کنیم.
آنها
they
راrâ
definite direct object marker
بایدbâyad
must
زمانی کهzamâni ke
when (conjunction)
بذرbazr
seed
کاشتنkâshtan
to plant
آبیاری کردنâbyâri kardan
to water / to irrigate
Questions & Answers about زمانی که بذرها را میکاریم، باید آنها را آبیاری کنیم.
Why do we use زمانی که for 'when' here instead of کی?
کی is a question word used to ask 'When?' (like 'When are you going?'). زمانی که (literally 'the time that') or وقتی که are conjunctions used to link two phrases together, as in 'When X happens, Y happens.'
Why is the first verb میکاریم (we plant) in the normal present tense, rather than the subjunctive?
While you have learned that many conjunctions trigger the subjunctive, زمانی که and وقتی که usually take the normal present tense (indicative) when talking about general facts or habits. Since 'when we plant seeds' is a factual statement about a process, it uses the regular present tense.
Why doesn't the second verb, آبیاری کنیم (we water), have the می prefix?
Because it follows باید (must), which forces the verb into the subjunctive mood. For compound verbs like آبیاری کردن (to water), forming the subjunctive usually just means dropping the می prefix from the conjugated part (کنیم).
Why does the word را appear twice in this sentence?
را marks the specific direct object of an action. There are two actions here: planting and watering. بذرها (the seeds) is the specific object being planted, and آنها (them) is the specific object being watered. Both need their own را.
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