A2 Sentence Structure 6 min read Leicht

Zählen und Ordnen: Verwendung von 'tā', 'nafar' und Ordinalzahlen

Always keep nouns singular after numbers and use 'tā' for things or 'nafar' for people.
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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Use 'اول' for first, 'دوم' for second, and always add 'نفر' for people or 'تا' for objects when counting.

  • Ordinal numbers follow the noun: 'کتاب اول' (The first book).
  • Use 'نفر' as a classifier for people: 'سه نفر' (Three people).
  • Use 'تا' as a general classifier for countable objects: 'دو تا سیب' (Two apples).
Noun + (Ordinal) OR (Number + Classifier + Noun)

Overview

Wenn wir im Persischen über Zahlen sprechen, haben wir zwei Hauptaufgaben...

Ordinal Number Formation

Cardinal Ordinal Meaning
یک (Yek)
اول (Avval)
First
دو (Do)
دوم (Dovom)
Second
سه (Se)
سوم (Sevvom)
Third
چهار (Chahar)
چهارم (Chaharom)
Fourth
پنج (Panj)
پنجم (Panjom)
Fifth
شش (Shesh)
ششم (Sheshom)
Sixth
هفت (Haft)
هفتم (Haftom)
Seventh
هشت (Hasht)
هشتم (Hashtom)
Eighth
نه (Noh)
نهم (Nohom)
Ninth
ده (Dah)
دهم (Dahom)
Tenth

Classifier Usage

Category Classifier Example
People
نفر (Nafar)
دو نفر (Two people)
Objects
تا (Tā)
سه تا (Three things)

Meanings

This rule covers how to order items (first, second) and how to quantify nouns using specific Persian classifiers.

1

Ordinal Numbers

Indicating the position of an item in a sequence.

“روز اول”

“کلاس دوم”

2

Human Classifier

Used specifically when counting human beings.

“دو نفر”

“پنج نفر دانشجو”

3

General Classifier

Used for counting inanimate objects or animals.

“سه تا مداد”

“ده تا کتاب”

Reference Table

Reference table for Zählen und Ordnen: Verwendung von 'tā', 'nafar' und Ordinalzahlen
Number Counting Objects (tā) Counting People (nafar) Ordinal (Rank)
1 (Yek)
یه / یک (Ye/Yek)
یک نفر (Yek nafar)
اول / اولین (Avval/in)
2 (Do)
دو تا (Do tā)
دو نفر (Do nafar)
دوم / دومین (Dovvom/in)
3 (Se)
سه تا (Se tā)
سه نفر (Se nafar)
سوم / سومین (Sevvom/in)
4 (Chahār)
چهار تا (Chahār tā)
چهار نفر (Chahār nafar)
چهارم (Chahārom)
5 (Panj)
پنج تا (Panj tā)
پنج نفر (Panj nafar)
پنجم (Panjom)
10 (Dah)
ده تا (Dah tā)
ده نفر (Dah nafar)
دهم (Dahom)

Formalitätsspektrum

Formell
من دو برادر دارم.

من دو برادر دارم. (Family introduction)

Neutral
من دو تا برادر دارم.

من دو تا برادر دارم. (Family introduction)

Informell
دو تا داداش دارم.

دو تا داداش دارم. (Family introduction)

Umgangssprache
دو تا داداش دارم.

دو تا داداش دارم. (Family introduction)

Counting Classifiers in Persian

Counters

Objects

  • تا (tā) General items
  • دستگاه (dastgāh) Machines/Tech

People

  • نفر (nafar) Individual people
  • کس (kas) Formal/Literary

Ordinal Suffix Placement

Suffix -om (After Noun)
کتاب دوم Book second
نفر سوم Person third
Suffix -omin (Before Noun)
دومین کتاب Second book
سومین نفر Third person

How to Count in Persian

1

Are you counting people?

YES
Use 'nafar'
NO
Use 'tā' (for most things)
2

Is the noun plural?

YES
Change it to SINGULAR!
NO ↓

Common Ordinal Numbers

⭐

Irregular

  • • اول (1st)
  • • نخست (1st - formal)
🔢

Regular (-om)

  • • دوم (2nd)
  • • سوم (3rd)
  • • چهارم (4th)
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Beispiele nach Niveau

1

یک کتاب

One book

2

دو تا سیب

Two apples

3

سه نفر

Three people

4

روز اول

First day

1

کلاس دوم کجاست؟

Where is the second class?

2

چند تا مداد داری؟

How many pencils do you have?

3

او نفر چهارم است.

He is the fourth person.

4

پنج تا دوست دارم.

I have five friends.

1

اولین باری که دیدمش...

The first time I saw him...

2

ده نفر در جلسه بودند.

Ten people were in the meeting.

3

طبقه سوم ساختمان.

The third floor of the building.

4

چند نفر در این شهر زندگی می‌کنند؟

How many people live in this city?

1

او نخستین کسی بود که آمد.

He was the first person who came.

2

صدها نفر در تظاهرات شرکت کردند.

Hundreds of people participated in the protest.

3

بخش دوم کتاب خیلی جالب است.

The second part of the book is very interesting.

4

چند تا از آن‌ها را می‌خواهی؟

How many of them do you want?

1

در وهله اول باید دقت کرد.

In the first instance, one must be careful.

2

هزاران تن در این واقعه جان باختند.

Thousands of people (souls) died in this event.

3

او در رتبه دوم قرار گرفت.

He was placed in second rank.

4

چندین نفر اعتراض کردند.

Several people protested.

1

نخستین گام در مسیر موفقیت.

The first step on the path to success.

2

تعداد نفرات حاضر در جلسه.

The number of people present in the meeting.

3

او دومین فرزند خانواده است.

He is the second child of the family.

4

چند تایی از این‌ها را بردار.

Take a few of these.

Leicht verwechselbar

Counting & Ranking: Using 'tā', 'nafar', and Ordinals vs. تا vs نفر

Learners often use 'تا' for people because it's the most common classifier.

Counting & Ranking: Using 'tā', 'nafar', and Ordinals vs. Ordinal vs Cardinal

Mixing up 'یک' (one) and 'اول' (first).

Counting & Ranking: Using 'tā', 'nafar', and Ordinals vs. Ordinal Placement

Placing the ordinal before the noun like in English.

Häufige Fehler

✗

دو تا آدم

✓

دو نفر

Never use 'تا' for people.
✗

اول روز

✓

روز اول

Ordinals follow the noun.
✗

سه نفر کتاب

✓

سه تا کتاب

Use 'تا' for objects.
✗

یکوم

✓

اول

The first ordinal is irregular.
✗

چند نفر کتاب؟

✓

چند تا کتاب؟

Use 'تا' for objects.
✗

دوم کتاب

✓

کتاب دوم

Ordinal placement error.
✗

ده نفر سیب

✓

ده تا سیب

Classifier mismatch.
✗

اولین نفر

✓

نفر اول

While 'اولین' exists, 'نفر اول' is standard for position.
✗

سه تا نفر

✓

سه نفر

Don't combine classifiers.
✗

کتاب دومی

✓

کتاب دوم

Suffix error.
✗

سه عدد نفر

✓

سه نفر

Don't use 'عدد' for people.

Satzmuster

من ___ تا ___ دارم.

او نفر ___ است.

___ نفر در اتاق هستند.

___ باری که او را دیدم...

Real World Usage

Ordering food constant

دو تا پیتزا لطفا.

Classroom very common

او نفر اول است.

Social media common

سه تا عکس جدید.

Job interview occasional

من نفر دوم هستم.

Travel common

دو نفر هستیم.

Delivery apps very common

سه تا ساندویچ.

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⚠️

The Plural Trap

Never use plural nouns after numbers. It's '5 car', not '5 cars'. Your English brain will fight you on this!
🎯

Casual 'One'

In spoken Farsi, 'yek tā' sounds a bit stiff. Just use 'ye' (یه) before the noun for 'one/a'.
💬

Respecting People

Always use 'nafar' for people in restaurants or shops. Using 'tā' for people can sound slightly impolite or childish.

Smart Tips

Always pair the number with 'نفر'.

سه آدم → سه نفر

Add 'تا' after the number.

دو کتاب → دو تا کتاب

Put the ordinal after the noun.

اول کلاس → کلاس اول

Use 'چند' + classifier.

چند کتاب؟ → چند تا کتاب؟

Aussprache

dov-om

Ordinal Suffix

The '-om' suffix is pronounced clearly as a separate syllable.

Question

چند تا؟ ↑

Rising intonation for questions.

Einprägen

Eselsbrücke

Remember: 'Nafar' is for 'Neighbors' (people), and 'Ta' is for 'Things'.

Visuelle Assoziation

Imagine a line of people (Nafar) and a pile of toys (Ta).

Rhyme

For people use Nafar, for things use Ta, counting in Persian is not very far!

Story

Ali is the first (Avval) person (Nafar) in line. He holds two (Do) things (Ta) in his hand. He is the second (Dovom) person to enter the shop.

Word Web

اولدومنفرتاچندتعداد

Herausforderung

Count 5 items in your room using 'تا' and 3 people you know using 'نفر'.

Kulturelle Hinweise

Using 'نفر' is a sign of respect for human subjects.

Similar usage, though 'تا' is sometimes replaced by 'دانه' (daneh) in formal speech.

Uses different classifiers, often omitting 'تا' in favor of direct counting.

The word 'نفر' comes from Arabic, meaning 'person' or 'individual'.

Gesprächseinstiege

“

چند تا خواهر و برادر داری؟

“

نفر اول کلاس کی بود؟

“

چند نفر در مهمانی بودند؟

“

اولین باری که به ایران آمدی کی بود؟

Tagebuch-Impulse

Describe your family members.
List the first three things you do in the morning.
Describe your favorite book.
Reflect on your first day at school.

Häufige Fehler

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

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Test Yourself

Choose the correct counter for people.

ما چهار ___ هستیم.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: نفر
We use 'nafar' when counting people. 'Tā' is for objects.
Find the mistake in this sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

من سه تا سیب‌ها خوردم.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: من سه تا سیب خوردم.
Nouns must be singular after a number in Persian. 'Sīb-hā' (apples) should be 'Sīb' (apple).
Put the words in the correct order for 'The third book'. Sentence Reorder

Arrange the words in the correct order:

All words placed

Click words above to build the sentence

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: کتاب سوم
When using the suffix '-om', the ordinal number comes after the noun.

Score: /3

Ubungsaufgaben

8 exercises
Fill in the correct classifier.

سه ___ کتاب

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: تا
Books are objects.
Choose the correct ordinal. Multiple Choice

The second day is ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: روز دوم
Ordinals follow the noun.
Fix the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

دو تا آدم

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: دو نفر
Use 'نفر' for people.
Reorder the words. Sentence Reorder

اول / روز / است / این

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: این روز اول است
Standard word order.
Translate to Persian. Übersetzung

Four people

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: چهار نفر
People = نفر.
Is this correct? True False Rule

سه تا نفر (True/False)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: False
Don't double up classifiers.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: چند تا سیب می‌خواهی؟ B: ___

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: دو تا
Answering quantity.
Sort into People or Objects. Grammar Sorting

Which uses 'نفر'?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: دوست
Friend is a person.

Score: /8

Practice Bank

10 exercises
Translate 'Two coffees' into Persian. Übersetzung

Two coffees

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: دو تا قهوه
Which is the correct way to say 'The second floor' using '-omin'? Multiple Choice

The second floor

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: دومین طبقه
Fill in the blank: 'The first person'. Lückentext

نفر ___

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: اول
Correct this sentence: 'I have 5 friends.' Error Correction

من پنج تا دوست دارم.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: من پنج نفر دوست دارم.
Match the English to the Persian. Match Pairs

Match the pairs:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ["\u0627\u0648\u0644","\u062f\u0648\u0645","\u0633\u0648\u0645","\u0686\u0647\u0627\u0631\u0645"]
Order the words: 'I bought 3 shirts.' Sentence Reorder

خریدم / سه / تا / پیراهن

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: سه تا پیراهن خریدم
Complete the sentence: 'He is the fourth child.' Lückentext

او فرزند ___ است.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: چهارم
How do you say 'How many people?' informally? Multiple Choice

How many people?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: چند نفر؟
Translate '10 pieces of paper' (use 'tā'). Übersetzung

10 pieces of paper

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ده تا کاغذ
Fix the ordinal: 'The 20th day'. Error Correction

روز بیست

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: روز بیستم

Score: /10

FAQ (8)

No, it is considered rude. Always use 'نفر'.

In casual speech, 'تا' is the safest bet for objects.

Yes, most others follow the '-om' rule.

Yes, it is standard in Persian.

No, use 'تا' or no classifier for animals.

Persian adjectives and ordinals follow the noun.

Usually 'نفرات' is used in formal contexts.

Use 'چند تا' for objects and 'چند نفر' for people.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish partial

Ordinal adjectives

Word order is reversed.

French partial

Ordinals

Persian uses classifiers; French does not.

German moderate

Zählwörter

Persian's 'تا' is much more universal.

Japanese high

Counters (josuushi)

Persian is much simpler with only two main counters.

Arabic moderate

Adad

Persian is gender-neutral.

Chinese high

Measure words

Persian 'تا' is a general-purpose measure word.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Previous
Persischer Kalender: Tage, Monate & Jahreszeiten

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