Breakdown of من هم چای میخواهم.
من
I
چایchâi
tea
خواستنkhâstan
to want / to ask (request from someone)
همham
also, too / both ... and / together / each other
Questions & Answers about من هم چای میخواهم.
Why is هم placed right after من instead of at the end of the sentence like in English?
In Farsi, هم (meaning also or too) usually comes right after the word it emphasizes. Placing it directly after من (I) specifically means 'I also want tea' (just like someone else does), rather than 'I want tea in addition to something else'.
I have learned about the object marker را. Why is it missing after چای (tea) here?
The object marker را is only used for specific direct objects, which usually translate to 'the' or 'that' in English. Because you are asking for tea in a general, indefinite sense here, you leave را out.
Why is there a letter و (vav) in میخواهم if it is not pronounced?
The letter و in the verb میخواهم (I want) is a famous silent letter in Farsi, often called the 'silent vav'. In older forms of the language, it was pronounced, but today the root خواه is simply pronounced 'khāh'.
Does the prefix می mean this is happening right now?
Yes! The prefix می is added to verbs to show the simple present or present continuous tense. Even though 'want' is a state of being in English, Farsi uses this standard present prefix along with the personal ending م to mean 'I want'.