Learn Farsi: دلفین رنگارنگی که با آن بازی کردیم، خیلی باهوش است. - The colorful dolphin with which we played is very smart.

دلفین رنگارنگی که با آن بازی کردیم، خیلی باهوش است.dolfin-e rangârangi ke bâ ân bâzi kardim, kheyli bâhoosh ast.

The colorful dolphin with which we played is very smart.

Breakdown of دلفین رنگارنگی که با آن بازی کردیم، خیلی باهوش است.

Questions & Answers about دلفین رنگارنگی که با آن بازی کردیم، خیلی باهوش است.

Why does the sentence use bâ ân (with it) if ke already translates to 'which'?

In English, we can say 'the dolphin with which we played.' In Farsi, ke just links the two parts of the sentence and doesn't carry the preposition 'with' on its own. Instead, Farsi keeps the preposition and adds a pronoun inside the relative clause. So literally, you are saying: 'The colorful dolphin that we played with it.' This 'it' (ân) is a resumptive pronoun that points back to the dolphin.

Why is there an -i suffix at the end of rangârang (rangârangi)? Doesn't that mean 'a colorful dolphin'?

Here, the -i is not the indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'an'. It is the relative -i. When a noun phrase is described by a ke clause, Farsi often attaches this -i to the end of the phrase to signal that more information is coming. Since the adjective rangârang (colorful) is part of that noun phrase and comes right before ke, the -i attaches to it.

Since a dolphin is an animal, could we use u instead of ân in the phrase bâ ân?

Yes, you can! While ân (it/that) is the standard pronoun for animals and objects, Farsi speakers often use u (he/she) for animals, especially if they are interacting with them or feel a connection to them. Saying bâ u here would also be perfectly natural.

I know bâ means 'with'. Does the word bâhush literally translate to 'with smart'?