Question 1

The lesson is about irregular comparatives. Is کمتر irregular in Farsi?

Accepted Answer

Not really! In Farsi, کمتر (kamtar) is formed regularly by taking the adjective کم (kam - little/few) and adding the standard -تر (-tar) suffix. It might feel irregular to English speakers because we change the word entirely to "less" (or "lower" for a score), but Farsi keeps it simple.

Question 2

Why is the word از used here after the comparative adjective?

Accepted Answer

The preposition از (az), which you already know as "from", is the standard word used for "than" in Farsi comparisons. When you want to say "lower than" or "less than", you literally say "less from" (کمتر از).

Question 3

Why is there a ی added to the end of نمره in both نمره‌ی من and نمره‌ی خواهرم?

Accepted Answer

This is the Ezafe connector linking the noun to its possessor (like saying "score of me"). Because the word نمره (nomre - score) ends in a silent 'h' (which makes an 'e' vowel sound), Farsi requires you to add a ی (ye) to comfortably connect the sounds.

Question 4

In English we just say "my sister's" at the end. Why does Farsi repeat the word for score (نمره‌ی) again?

Accepted Answer

In Farsi comparisons, it is much more standard and natural to repeat the noun being compared. Instead of saying "My score was lower than my sister's," Farsi prefers the exact balance of "My score was lower than the score of my sister" (نمره‌ی من کمتر از نمره‌ی خواهرم بود).

نمره‌ی من کمتر از نمره‌ی خواهرم بود.

Breakdown of نمره‌ی من کمتر از نمره‌ی خواهرم بود.

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