Breakdown of اپراتور گفت که آنتن بیسیم شکسته است.
است
is
گفتنgoftan
to say / to tell
کهke
that (conjunction)
شکستنshekastan
to break
اپراتورoperâtor
operator
آنتنânten
antenna
بیسیمbisim
two-way radio
Questions & Answers about اپراتور گفت که آنتن بیسیم شکسته است.
Why does the Farsi sentence end with است (is) when the English translation says "was broken"?
This is the main rule of reported speech in Farsi! Unlike English, which usually shifts the tense backward (from "is" to "was" after "said"), Farsi keeps the exact tense the original speaker used. The operator originally said, "The antenna is broken" (آنتن بیسیم شکسته است). When reporting it, you keep است (is), even though the reporting verb گفت (said) is in the past.
How does the word بیسیم mean "radio"?
بیسیم literally translates to "wireless" (بی means "without" and سیم means "wire"). In Farsi, this is the standard everyday noun used for a two-way radio, a walkie-talkie, or a police radio.
How is "the radio's" indicated in this sentence?
It is shown using the Ezafe. When you say آنتن بیسیم out loud, you add the invisible -e sound to connect the words: ānten-e bi-sim. This links the noun آنتن (antenna) to its possessor بیسیم (radio), meaning "the antenna of the radio" or "the radio's antenna".
Why is شکسته است (has broken) used instead of the simple past شکست?
شکسته است is the present perfect tense. While it literally means "has broken", Farsi commonly uses the present perfect form of verbs like breaking, opening, or closing to describe a current state. Therefore, it translates naturally to the adjective phrase "is broken", emphasizing the condition the antenna is in right now.
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