Breakdown of دربان به ارباب گفت که مهمانها رسیده بودند.
بهbe
to
گفتنgoftan
to say / to tell
مهمانmehmân
guest
کهke
that (conjunction)
رسیدنrasidan
to arrive
دربانdarbân
doorman / porter
اربابarbâb
master / lord
Questions & Answers about دربان به ارباب گفت که مهمانها رسیده بودند.
How does the word darbân demonstrate the use of the -bân suffix?
The word darbân is made of dar (door) and the suffix -bân (keeper or guard). This suffix attaches to nouns to show who takes care of or guards that thing, so literally it creates a "door-keeper" or doorman.
Why use the past perfect reside budand instead of just the simple past residand?
Because the sentence talks about two past events where one happened before the other. The guests arrived before the doorman spoke. Just like the English "had arrived," Farsi uses the past perfect (reside budand) to make this timeline clear in reported speech.
Does arbâb mean "boss" in a modern office, or is it an older word?
It is mostly a historical or traditional word for "master," "lord," or a wealthy landowner. In a modern workplace setting, you wouldn't use arbâb for your boss; instead, you would use a word like ra'is (boss) or modir (manager).
Why do we need the preposition be before arbâb?
Unlike the English verb "tell" which can take a direct object (e.g., "told the master"), the Farsi verb goftan (to say/tell) always needs the preposition be (to) to introduce the listener. You are literally saying that the doorman said to the master (be arbâb goft).
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