Polite You With شما
شما goes with the ending ـید (استید), and تو goes with the ending ـی (استی).
How It Works
| Who you talk to | Say | Example |
|---|---|---|
| an older person, a teacher, a stranger, an official | شما | شما معلم استید؟ |
| more than one person | شما | شما شاگرد استید. |
| a close friend, a sibling, a child | تو | تو کجا استی؟ |
تو with an older person or a stranger sounds rude. شما with a close friend sounds distant. A teacher can say تو to a young student, and the student answers with شما.
When you are not sure, say شما.
A title or a warm word makes the politeness even clearer: مادر جان، شما خوب استید؟ The pronoun and the verb ending must match, so شما goes with the ending ـید, as in استید.
Examples (5)
- شما معلم استید؟
Are you a teacher?
A stranger or an older person gets شما and the ending ـید.
- تو کجا استی، فرید؟
Where are you, Farid?
A close friend gets تو and the ending ـی.
- مادر جان، شما خوب استید؟
Mother, are you well?
شما with the warm word جان shows love and respect together.
- شما از کجا استید، داکتر صاحب؟
Where are you from, Doctor?
A male doctor gets شما and the respect word صاحب.
- شما شاگرد استید.
You are students.
A teacher talking to a class says شما for more than one person.
Common Mistakes
Saying تو to a male teacher.
تو از کجا استی، معلم صاحب؟شما از کجا استید، معلم صاحب؟A teacher is someone you respect, so say شما with the ending ـید.
Mixing شما with the تو ending.
شما کجا استی؟شما کجا استید؟شما goes with the ending ـید, as in استید. استی goes only with تو.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Polite you is the same word as plural you, so the pronouns come first.
Related Patterns
- جان و صاحبAdding جان and صاحب
جان and صاحب add warmth and respect to a name or title.
Level 1 - استم، استی، است، استیم، استید، استندPresent Forms of Be
استی goes with تو, and استید goes with شما.
Level 1 - چطور استید؟Asking How Someone Is
چطور استید؟ is the polite way to ask how someone is.
Level 1 - سلام و خداحافظHello and Goodbye
Greetings change with how well you know the person.
Level 1
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Polite You With شما in Bubblegum
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