Breakdown of بهتر است که با دکتر صحبت کنیم.
دکتر
doctor
باbâ
with
صحبت کردنsohbat kardan
to speak / to talk
کهke
that (conjunction)
بهتر استbehtar ast
it is better (that), you had better
Questions & Answers about بهتر است که با دکتر صحبت کنیم.
Why is there no be- or bo- prefix on sohbat konim if it is in the subjunctive?
The rule you just learned is to add the be- prefix to the present stem for the subjunctive. However, with compound verbs like sohbat kardan (to talk), the prefix is usually dropped. So instead of sohbat bokonim, you just use the noun and the conjugated stem: sohbat konim.
The translation says "talk to the doctor", but doesn't bā mean "with"?
Exactly! In English, we say "talk to someone", but in Farsi, the rule is to talk "with" someone. That is why the sentence uses bā (with) instead of a preposition like be (to).
Is the word ke (that) required here?
Yes, ke acts as the bridge between "It is better" and "we talk". It connects the main phrase to the subjunctive part of the sentence. In English, we often drop "that" and just say "It's better we talk", but in Farsi, you should keep the ke.
Why does the sentence use ast (is) and then konim (we talk) with two different endings?
There are two separate parts to this sentence. The first is a general statement, behtar ast (it is better), which always uses the "it" form ast. The second part is about the action "we" are taking, so it uses the "we" ending -im on the verb sohbat konim.
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