Breakdown of او نه پنبه نه ابریشم میخواهد.
او
he/she
خواستنkhâstan
to want / to ask (request from someone)
ابریشمabrisham
silk
پنبهpanbe
cotton
نه ... نهna ... na
neither ... nor
Questions & Answers about او نه پنبه نه ابریشم میخواهد.
Why is the verb میخواهد (wants) positive when the sentence means he doesn't want them?
When using نه... نه... for "neither... nor...", the negative meaning is already carried by the conjunctions themselves. Because of this, formal Farsi usually keeps the verb positive, as seen here with میخواهد. It literally translates to "He wants neither cotton nor silk." (Note: in casual conversation, you might sometimes hear people use a negative verb like نمیخواهد with this structure, but the positive verb is correct and very common here).
Why isn't the direct object marker را used after ابریشم?
The object marker را is only used when the direct object is specific (like "the silk" or "that cotton"). Because he doesn't want cotton or silk in a general sense, they are indefinite objects and do not take را.
How is میخواهد pronounced in casual, spoken Farsi?
In everyday speech, میخواهد is almost always shortened to میخواد.
Do I need to add a word like و (and) between the two items?
No, just like in English where we say "neither X nor Y", you simply place نه directly before each item: نه پنبه نه ابریشم. Adding an extra joining word between them would sound unnatural.
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