Breakdown of هی، اینجا را نگاه کن!
اینجاinjâ
here
راrâ
definite direct object marker
نگاه کردنnegâh kardan
to look, to watch
هیhey
hey! (spoken)
Questions & Answers about هی، اینجا را نگاه کن!
This lesson is about everyday colloquial speech, but this sentence uses the formal را. How would this actually sound on the streets of Tehran?
In colloquial Tehrani, را changes to رو after words ending in a vowel (and often just -و after consonants). So, a Tehrani speaker would almost always say اینجا رو نگاه کن (inja ro negah kon) instead of the formal written form اینجا را نگاه کن.
Why do we need the object marker را here at all? Isn't "here" just a location?
In Farsi, the compound verb نگاه کردن (to look) takes a direct object. While in English you "look at a place", Farsi treats the place itself as the direct receiver of the action. Since اینجا (here) is a specific target you are pointing out, it requires the specific direct object marker را (or colloquially, رو).
Why doesn't the command نگاه کن (look!) start with the usual بـ (be-) prefix for imperatives?
With compound verbs formed with کردن, dropping the بـ prefix on the imperative is very common and usually sounds more natural. While نگاه بکن is technically correct, نگاه کن is much smoother and is exactly what you will hear in everyday conversation.