Learn Farsi: یا الماس یا زمرد دزدیده شد. - Either the diamond or the emerald was stolen.

In Farsi, the passive voice is built using the past participle of the main verb plus a form of شدن (to become). Here, دزدیده is the past participle of دزدیدن (to steal), and شد is the 3rd person singular past form. Literally, it means 'became stolen'.

How do you say 'either... or...' in Farsi?

You just repeat the word یا (or). Placing یا before the first option and another یا before the second option creates the meaning 'either... or...'. So, یا الماس یا زمرد translates to 'either the diamond or the emerald'.

Since there are two items mentioned (diamond and emerald), why is the verb شد singular instead of the plural شدند?

Because of the 'either... or...' structure. Only one of the two items was actually stolen. Since the real subject is just one item, the verb stays in the singular form شد.

Is there a connection between the verb دزدیدن (to steal) and the Farsi word for 'thief'?

Yes! The root of the verb is the noun دزد (thief). You will often see this pattern in Farsi where a basic noun is turned into an action by adding a verb ending.