Q: Could I say حملهشان instead of حملهی آنها?

Yes! حملهی آنها uses the independent pronoun آنها (they/them) connected with an Ezafe to mean "their attack". You can also use the attached possessive pronoun شان (shān) and say حملهشان (hamle-shān). Both mean exactly the same thing and are very common.

Question 1

Why is there a ی at the end of حمله (attack)?

Accepted Answer

The word for "attack" is حمله (hamle), which ends in a silent ه. To connect it to آن‌ها (them) to say "their attack", we use the connecting vowel called the Ezafe. When a word ends in a silent ه, the Ezafe is written with a ی and pronounced -ye. So, حمله‌ی آن‌ها is pronounced hamle-ye ānhā.

Question 2

Why do we need the word را (rā) in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

را (rā) marks the specific direct object of the sentence—the thing being seen. Since "their attack" (حمله‌ی آن‌ها) is a specific, defined thing (not just "an attack" in general), we must place را immediately after the entire noun phrase.

Question 3

Could I say حمله‌شان instead of حمله‌ی آن‌ها?

Accepted Answer

Yes! حمله‌ی آن‌ها uses the independent pronoun آن‌ها (they/them) connected with an Ezafe to mean "their attack". You can also use the attached possessive pronoun شان (shān) and say حمله‌شان (hamle-shān). Both mean exactly the same thing and are very common.

Question 4

In this lesson about long infinitives, how does حمله relate to the verb "to attack"?

Accepted Answer

حمله (hamle) is a standard noun. In Farsi, "to attack" is a compound verb made by combining this noun with the verb for "to do": حمله کردن (hamle kardan). If you wanted to use a long infinitive (verbal noun) to express "the act of attacking", you would use حمله کردن. But to just say "their attack", the simple noun حمله works best here.

حمله‌ی آن‌ها را دیدیم.

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