- What is a grammatical mood?
- When is indicative mood used?
- When is subjunctive mood used?
- What is the difference between indicative and subjunctive moods?
- When is imperative mood used?
The mood of a tense indicates whether it expresses a fact, a command, a wish, an assumption, an obligation, etc. For example, the verb "to resign" is in:
- indicative mood in: "The chairman resigns"
- subjunctive mood in: "I insist that the chairman resign"
- imperative mood in: "Resign!"
Modern Persian has three moods: indicative, subjunctive and imperative. The optative mood is obsolete and is only found in some fixed expressions.
Indicative mood
The indicative mood is used to express factual statements.
| باران نمیآید Bârân nemiâyad It is not raining |
| در خانه ماند Dar khâne mând He/She stayed at home |
| تهران پایتخت ایران است Tehrân pâytakht-e Irân ast Tehran is the capital of Iran |
| سفر چقدر طول میکشد؟ Safar cheghadr tul mikeshad? How long will the journey take? |
Subjunctive mood
As opposed to the indicative mood, the subjunctive mood is about non-factual statements. It is used to express possibility, uncertainty, obligation, desire, etc. In English, the subjunctive survives only in very limited situations e.g. "We insist that he do the job properly", "God save the Queen".
| فکر کنم باران بیاید Fekr konam bârân biyâyad I think it is going to rain |
| بهتر است در خانه بمانی Behtar ast dar khâne bemâni It is better that you stay at home |
| شک دارم که بخواهد مرا ببیند Shak dâram bekhwâhad ma'râ bebinad I doubt that she wants to see me |
| میخواهیم شاد باشیم Mikhâhim shâd bâshim We want to be happy |
Imperative mood
The imperative mood expresses direct commands or requests.
| در خانه بمان Dar khâne bemân Stay at home! |
| ناراحت نباش Nârâhat nabâsh Don't be sad! |