اگر وقت نداری، امشب دیر بیا.

If you don’t have time, come late tonight.

Breakdown of اگر وقت نداری، امشب دیر بیا.

• نداشتن: to not have
• آمدن: to come
• دیر: late
• امشب: tonight
• اگر: if
• وقت: time

Questions & Answers about اگر وقت نداری، امشب دیر بیا.

What does اگر do here, and can it be omitted?

اگر introduces a conditional clause: اگر + (statement) = if ….
In everyday speech it can be omitted if the if-meaning is obvious from context, but in writing and careful speech it’s usually kept:

• اگر وقت نداری، … = If you don’t have time, …
• (colloquial) وقت نداری؟ امشب دیر بیا. can still imply the condition, but it’s less explicitly if.

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Why is it وقت نداری and not something like “you are not having time”?

Persian commonly expresses to have with داشتن (to have) and a direct object:

• وقت داری = you have time
• وقت نداری = you don’t have time

So it’s literally If you don’t have time…, not “you aren’t having time.”

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How is نداری formed? What are its parts?

نداری = نه/نـ (negative prefix na-/ne-) + داری (you have)

• داری is the present tense of داشتن for you (singular).
  So نداری = you don’t have.

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Is نداری informal? What would be the more formal/polite version?

Yes. نداری / بیا are addressed to you (singular, informal).
Formal/polite equivalents:

• اگر وقت ندارید، امشب دیر بیایید. (to one person politely, or to multiple people)

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What exactly is بیا grammatically?

بیا is the imperative (command/request) form of آمدن (to come) for you (singular informal).
So دیر بیا = come late / come later (depending on context).

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Why is it دیر بیا and not دیرتر بیا?

They’re different:

• دیر بیا = come late (i.e., at a late time)
• دیرتر بیا = come later (i.e., later than some reference time, usually “later than planned/than now”)

In many real contexts English come later might map more naturally to دیرتر بیا, but دیر بیا is still common and can imply “don’t come early; come at a late hour.”

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Does دیر mean “late” or “slow”? How do I know?

دیر most often means late (time-related):

• دیر آمد = he came late
  It can also be part of expressions like دیر فهمیدن (to realize late).
  “Slow” is usually آهسته or کند. Here, with بیا (come), دیر is clearly late.

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What’s the role of امشب in the sentence, and where can it go?

امشب means tonight and sets the time frame for the main clause. It’s flexible in position:

• اگر وقت نداری، امشب دیر بیا. (common)
• امشب اگر وقت نداری، دیر بیا. (also possible, slightly different emphasis)

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Why is there a comma, and is it required?

The comma separates the conditional clause from the main clause, like in English:

• If you don’t have time, come late tonight.

In Persian writing, it’s common (and helpful) but not absolutely required in informal contexts. It improves readability.

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Is this sentence a command, a suggestion, or permission?

Grammatically it’s an imperative, so it’s a command/request. Pragmatically, it often functions as a suggestion or permission, depending on tone:

• Said gently: “No worries—come later tonight.”
• Said firmly: “Don’t come early; come late.”

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How do I pronounce this sentence (roughly), and where is the stress?

One common colloquial reading:

• agar vaght nadâri, emšab dir biyâ.

Stress is generally on the last syllable of many words/phrases in natural speech, but Persian stress is not as rigid as English. Key points:

• vaght has a final consonant cluster; the gh is a voiced uvular sound (often approximated by learners as a strong g/k in the throat).
• biyâ ends with â (long a as in “father”).

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Could the meaning change if I replace وقت with something else?

Yes—وقت is specifically time (availability). Alternatives change nuance:

• اگر فرصت نداری، … (فرصت = opportunity/free time; slightly more formal)
• اگر حوصله نداری، … (حوصله = patience/energy/mood; meaning shifts to “If you’re not up for it…”)

In your sentence, وقت keeps it about scheduling/time availability.