خواهرم با لبخند گفت که حال مادرم بهتر است.

A natural pronunciation is:

khāharam bā labkhand goft ke hāl-e mādaram behtar ast

A few notes:

• خواهرم = khāharam = my sister
• با لبخند = bā labkhand = with a smile / smiling
• گفت = goft = said
• که = ke = that
• حال مادرم = hāl-e mādaram = my mother’s condition / how my mother is
• بهتر است = behtar ast = is better

In normal speech, some vowels may sound a little shorter or smoother together.

In Persian, -م attached to a noun means my.

So:

• خواهر = sister
• خواهرم = my sister

This -م is a possessive ending. Very common examples:

• برادرم = my brother
• دوستم = my friend
• کتابم = my book

So instead of using a separate word like English my, Persian often attaches it directly to the noun.

Yes, you can.

Both mean my sister:

• خواهرم
• خواهر من

But خواهرم is usually more natural and compact in everyday Persian.
خواهر من can sound more emphatic, contrastive, or slightly more explicit depending on context.

For example:

• خواهرم آمد. = My sister came.
• خواهر من آمد، نه دوستم. = My sister came, not my friend.

So in this sentence, خواهرم is the most normal choice.

با means with, and لبخند means smile.

So literally:

• با لبخند = with a smile

In natural English, that often becomes:

• smiling
• with a smile
• with a grin (depending on tone)

So خواهرم با لبخند گفت literally means:

• My sister said with a smile

This is a very common Persian structure:

• با عصبانیت گفت = said angrily / said with anger
• با خوشحالی جواب داد = answered happily / with खुशी
• با آرامش صحبت کرد = spoke calmly

گفت is the simple past form of گفتن = to say.

So:

• گفتن = to say
• گفت = he/she said

Persian does not need a separate word like she here if the context already makes it clear. Since the subject is خواهرم, we understand:

• خواهرم ... گفت = My sister ... said

So گفت by itself can mean said for he, she, or even sometimes it, depending on context.

که here means that and introduces the content of what was said.

So:

• گفت که... = said that...

The sentence breaks down like this:

• خواهرم با لبخند گفت = My sister said with a smile
• که حال مادرم بهتر است = that my mother’s condition is better

In everyday Persian, که is extremely common after verbs like:

• گفت = said
• فکر کرد = thought
• دید = saw
• شنید = heard

Also, in casual speech, که is sometimes omitted when the meaning is clear, but keeping it is very normal and often clearer for learners.

No. Here حال does not mean now.

In this sentence, حال means:

• state
• condition
• how someone is feeling

So حال مادرم means:

• my mother’s condition
• how my mother is
• my mother’s health/state

This is very common in Persian:

• حالَت چطور است؟ = How are you?
• حال او خوب نیست. = He/She is not well.
• حال بیمار بهتر است. = The patient’s condition is better.

The word for now is usually حالا.

That -e sound is called ezafe.

When one noun is connected to another noun or description, Persian often uses this linking sound:

• حالِ مادرم = the condition of my mother

It is often not written in normal Persian script, but it is understood and pronounced.

So:

• حال مادرم is pronounced hāl-e mādaram

Ezafe is very important in Persian. More examples:

• کتابِ من = my book
• خانهِ بزرگ = the big house
• دوستِ خوبم = my good friend

In your sentence, حال is linked to مادرم, so we pronounce the ezafe: حالِ مادرم.

Just like خواهرم, it uses the possessive ending -م = my.

So:

• مادر = mother
• مادرم = my mother

That means:

• حال مادرم = my mother’s condition / how my mother is

Notice that Persian often expresses possession very compactly by attaching endings directly to nouns.

Persian usually places the verb at or near the end of the clause.

In the subordinate clause:

• حال مادرم بهتر است

the order is roughly:

• حال مادرم = my mother’s condition
• بهتر = better
• است = is

So literally it is close to:

• My mother’s condition better is

This is normal Persian word order. English and Persian often differ here because English puts is earlier, while Persian tends to keep the verb until the end.

بهتر means better, and است means is.

So:

• بهتر است = is better

In this sentence, it means my mother’s condition has improved.

A few related forms:

• خوب است = is good
• بدتر است = is worse
• خیلی بهتر است = is much better

In everyday spoken Persian, است is often shortened or dropped:

• حال مادرم بهتره = colloquial spoken form of حال مادرم بهتر است

It is mostly neutral to slightly formal standard Persian.

Why?

• است is the full written form of is, which is common in standard writing and careful speech.

• In everyday conversation, many speakers would say:

  خواهرم با لبخند گفت که حال مادرم بهتره.

That version sounds more conversational because بهتره is the spoken form of بهتر است.

So:

• بهتر است = more standard/written/careful
• بهتره = more everyday spoken Persian

Both are correct; they just fit different registers.

Yes. Even if the meaning is the same, there are several natural English translations:

• My sister said with a smile that my mother is better.
• My sister said with a smile that my mother was doing better.
• My sister smiled and said that my mother was better.
• My sister said, smiling, that my mother was better.
• My sister said with a smile that my mother’s condition was better.

The exact English version depends on context:

• If you want a more literal translation, keep with a smile.
• If you want more natural English, smiling often works better.
• If حال refers specifically to health or recovery, my mother was doing better may sound best.