من چای را با شکر مینوشم.

را marks the direct object, especially when it is specific or definite in some way. In من چای را با شکر می‌نوشم, چای را means that tea is the thing being drunk.

A few key points:

• را does not mean the by itself.
• It usually shows that the speaker has a particular object in mind.
• It comes after the noun: چای را

So the structure is:

• من = I
• چای را = tea (as the direct object)
• با شکر = with sugar
• می‌نوشم = I drink / I am drinking

Persian usually prefers Subject – Object – Verb word order, while English usually uses Subject – Verb – Object.

So:

• English: I drink tea
• Persian: من چای را می‌نوشم

In this sentence, the full order is:

• من = subject
• چای را = object
• با شکر = prepositional phrase
• می‌نوشم = verb

It is very normal in Persian for the verb to come at the end.

با means with. So با شکر means with sugar.

In Persian, prepositions come before the noun, just like in English:

• با شکر = with sugar
• با دوست = with a friend
• با چای = with tea

In this sentence, با شکر describes how the tea is drunk.

می‌ is a very common prefix used in present/imperfective verb forms. In many basic sentences, it gives the sense of:

• I drink
• I am drinking
• I do drink (depending on context)

So:

• نوشم by itself is not the normal modern standalone form here
• می‌نوشم is the correct present-form structure

In everyday learning, it is useful to think of می‌ as part of the normal present tense pattern.

The -م is the first person singular ending, meaning I.

So می‌نوشم breaks down like this:

• می‌- = present/imperfective marker
• نوش = verb stem
• -م = I

That is why the verb itself already tells you the subject is I.

You can often leave out من because the verb ending -م already shows that the subject is I.

So both are possible:

• من چای را با شکر می‌نوشم
• چای را با شکر می‌نوشم

Including من can add clarity, emphasis, or contrast, such as:

• من چای را با شکر می‌نوشم، ولی او بدون شکر.
• I drink tea with sugar, but he drinks it without sugar.

Yes, the standard spelling is می‌نوشم with a small invisible separator called a zero-width non-joiner between می and the verb.

So:

• Standard: می‌نوشم
• Informal typing: مینوشم

Both are understood, but می‌نوشم is the preferred formal spelling.

You may also see this with many verbs:

• می‌روم
• می‌خورم
• می‌بینم

It is pronounced approximately like mi-noo-sham.

A rough breakdown:

• می = mi
• نوش = noosh
• م = am

So the whole verb sounds like mi-noo-sham.

Also:

• چای sounds like chāy
• شکر sounds roughly like shekar

So the whole sentence is approximately:

man chāy rā bā shekar mi-noo-sham

Persian does not use articles in the same way English does.

English often requires:

• a tea
• the tea

But Persian often leaves this unstated, and the meaning comes from context.

In this sentence:

• چای can mean tea
• چای را suggests a more specific object because of را

So Persian often expresses definiteness differently from English, and را helps signal that the object is specific.

It can mean either one, depending on context.

می‌نوشم is a present/imperfective form, so it may express:

• a general habit: I drink tea with sugar
• an action happening now: I am drinking tea with sugar

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

This is very common in Persian: one form can cover meanings that English separates into different tenses.

Yes. The dictionary form is نوشیدن, which means to drink.

From that verb, you get forms like:

• می‌نوشم = I drink / I am drinking
• می‌نوشی = you drink
• می‌نوشد = he/she drinks

So when learning vocabulary, you would usually memorize:

• نوشیدن = to drink

and then learn how it changes in sentences.

Sometimes yes, but the meaning or naturalness may change.

Compare:

• من چای را با شکر می‌نوشم
• من چای با شکر می‌نوشم

With را, چای is clearly marked as the direct object. Without را, the sentence may sound less specific, and in some contexts it may feel less natural or slightly different in emphasis.

For learners, a good rule is:

• If the direct object is specific, را is often used.
• If the object is more general or indefinite, را may be omitted.

Yes, it is natural. It clearly means that the speaker drinks tea with sugar.

In casual speech, though, people might also say things in slightly different ways depending on emphasis, for example:

• من چای را با شکر می‌خورم in some colloquial contexts is sometimes heard, but for standard usage نوشیدن is the normal verb for drinking.
• چایم را با شکر می‌نوشم = I drink my tea with sugar

The sentence you have is a perfectly good standard example for learning basic Persian structure.