Impersonal Constructions in Persian

In Brief

Persian often expresses necessity or possibility without naming a person. Invariable words such as باید (bāyad, “must”) and patterns such as می‌شود + past stem (“one can / it is possible to”) let a statement apply generally; when a specific person is meant, the following verb normally shows that person in the subjunctive.

Overview

An impersonal construction presents an action, rule, possibility, or judgment without making a particular person the grammatical subject (the person or thing that the sentence is about). English commonly uses one, generic you, passive wording, or dummy it: “You must show ID,” “Smoking is not allowed,” or “It is possible to pay online.” Persian has several compact and very common ways to convey the same ideas.

At B2, the key skill is not merely recognizing باید and شاید. You need to choose between a personal clause, whose verb ending identifies the person, and a truly general pattern with the past stem (the basic past-tense verb form). Compare باید بروید “you must go” with باید رفت “one must go / it is necessary to go.”

These constructions build directly on the Persian subjunctive (a verb form used for actions presented as required, possible, desired, or not yet established). The main expressions do not all behave identically: باید expresses necessity, شاید and ممکن است express uncertainty or possibility, and می‌شود can describe either practical possibility or what is permitted.

How It Works

Two basic sentence shapes

Persian pattern	Basic meaning	What follows
باید / نباید + personal subjunctive	a particular person must / must not do something	A verb with a personal ending: بروم، بروید
باید / نباید + past stem	one must / must not do something	A general, unchanging form: رفت، کرد، گفت
می‌شود / نمی‌شود + past stem	one can / cannot; it is (not) possible or permitted to	A general, unchanging form
لازم است + personal subjunctive	it is necessary that someone do something	Usually a verb with a personal ending
ممکن است + personal subjunctive	it is possible that something happen	Usually a verb with a personal ending
شاید + personal subjunctive	perhaps / maybe someone will do something	Usually a verb with a personal ending

The past stem is obtained by removing ـن from the infinitive (the dictionary form of a verb): رفتن → رفت, کردن → کرد, کشیدن → کشید. On its own, this form looks exactly like the third-person singular simple past. Context distinguishes them:

• علی رفت. — “Ali left.” Here رفت is an ordinary past-tense verb.
• باید رفت. — “One must leave.” Here رفت has a general, impersonal reading.

There is no separate word corresponding to English one or generic you in the second sentence.

باید and نباید: necessity and prohibition

باید (bāyad) means “must,” “have to,” or sometimes “should.” It is invariable: it does not change for person or number. The following verb carries the personal information.

Persian	English	Structure
باید بروم.	I must go.	بروم: first-person singular subjunctive
باید برویم.	We must go.	برویم: first-person plural subjunctive
باید بروید.	You must go.	بروید: second-person plural/polite subjunctive
باید رفت.	One must go.	رفت: impersonal past-stem pattern

The negative is normally placed on باید, producing نباید (nabāyad): نباید بروید “you must not go.” This expresses prohibition, not merely absence of obligation. English speakers should therefore keep must not and do not have to separate. لازم نیست بروید means “you do not need to go”; نباید بروید means “you must not go.”

می‌شود and نمی‌شود: possibility and permission

می‌شود (mishe in everyday speech; formal pronunciation mishavad) literally contains a form of شدن “to become,” but as an impersonal expression it often means “it is possible,” “one can,” or “is it allowed?” With a past stem, it leaves the actor unspecified:

• می‌شود آنلاین پرداخت کرد. — “It is possible to pay online.”
• اینجا نمی‌شود پارک کرد. — “You cannot park here / Parking is not possible here.”

A question such as می‌شود پنجره را باز کنم؟ (“May I open the window?”) uses a personal subjunctive, باز کنم, because the speaker is asking permission for their own action. The construction is still polite and indirect, but the doer is explicit in the verb ending.

The negative نمی‌شود may refer to physical impossibility, circumstances, or a rule. Context tells you whether it means “cannot be done” or “is not allowed.”

لازم است and ممکن است

لازم است (lāzem ast) means “it is necessary.” It is commonly followed by a subjunctive verb. The connector که (ke, “that”) may appear, especially when the clause is longer or needs a clear boundary, but it is often omitted:

• لازم است صبر کنید. — “It is necessary for you to wait.”
• لازم است که همه حضور داشته باشند. — “It is necessary that everyone be present.”

Its useful negative is لازم نیست: “it is not necessary / there is no need.” Unlike نباید, it does not prohibit the action.

ممکن است (momken ast) introduces a possibility: “it is possible that / may.” The verb that follows commonly takes the subjunctive when the event is uncertain or prospective:

• ممکن است قطار دیر برسد. — “The train may arrive late.”

In a verbless judgment, ممکن است can stand as the predicate: این کار ممکن است “This task is possible.” Do not automatically add another verb when the meaning is simply that something is possible.

شاید: an invariable adverb

شاید (shāyad) means “perhaps” or “maybe.” Like English maybe, it does not conjugate. In careful standard Persian, an uncertain future or present event often appears in the subjunctive after it: شاید بیاید “perhaps he or she will come.” In actual usage, particularly with statements about an existing fact or about the past, other tenses also occur: شاید خواب است “maybe he/she is asleep,” شاید رفته باشد “perhaps he/she has left.” The uncertainty belongs to شاید, while tense and viewpoint belong to the following clause.

Examples in Context

Persian	Romanization	English	Note
اینجا نباید سیگار کشید.	injā nabāyad sigār keshid.	One must not smoke here.	General prohibition; no named actor
می‌شود اینجا پارک کرد؟	mishe injā pārk kard?	Is it possible to park here?	Can ask about permission or practical possibility
لازم است بروید.	lāzem ast beravid.	It is necessary that you go.	Polite/plural you in the subjunctive
ممکن است باران بیاید.	momken ast bārān biyāyad.	It may rain.	Uncertain event
برای ورود باید کارت شناسایی نشان داد.	barāye vorud bāyad kārt-e shenāsāyi neshān dād.	To enter, one must show identification.	Formal general instruction
باید تا فردا جواب بدهم.	bāyad tā fardā javāb bedaham.	I have to reply by tomorrow.	Personal obligation
نباید این اطلاعات را منتشر کنید.	nabāyad in ettelā'āt rā montasher konid.	You must not publish this information.	Direct prohibition
لازم نیست امروز تصمیم بگیرید.	lāzem nist emruz tasmim begirid.	You do not need to decide today.	Lack of necessity, not prohibition
می‌شود با کارت پرداخت کرد.	mishe bā kārt pardākht kard.	You can pay by card.	General practical possibility
نمی‌شود از این در وارد شد.	nemishe az in dar vāred shod.	One cannot enter through this door.	Rule or physical restriction
می‌شود یک سؤال بپرسم؟	mishe yek so'āl beporsam?	May I ask a question?	Polite request with first-person subjunctive
شاید جلسه زود تمام شود.	shāyad jalase zud tamām shavad.	Perhaps the meeting will end early.	شاید + subjunctive
ممکن است او قبلاً رفته باشد.	momken ast u qablan rafte bāshad.	He or she may already have left.	Possibility concerning a completed action
لازم است که درخواست را امضا کنید.	lāzem ast ke darkhāst rā emzā konid.	You need to sign the application.	که introduces the clause clearly

Common Mistakes

Conjugating باید

• Wrong: بایدم بروم.
• Right: باید بروم.
• Why: Standard باید is invariable. The ending on بروم already identifies “I.” Do not attach ordinary personal endings to باید.

Using an infinitive after باید

• Wrong: باید رفتن.
• Right: باید رفت. / باید برویم.
• Why: Persian does not copy English must + infinitive. Use either the bare past stem for a general statement or a personal subjunctive for a particular actor.

Treating نباید as “do not have to”

• Wrong for “You do not have to wait”: نباید صبر کنید.
• Right: لازم نیست صبر کنید.
• Why: نباید forbids waiting: “You must not wait.” لازم نیست removes the obligation.

Using an indicative personal verb after necessity

• Wrong in the intended standard pattern: لازم است می‌روید.
• Right: لازم است بروید.
• Why: After لازم است, an action presented as necessary normally takes the subjunctive, without میـ.

Adding an English-style dummy pronoun

• Wrong: آن ممکن است باران بیاید.
• Right: ممکن است باران بیاید.
• Why: The English it in “it is possible” does not refer to anything. Persian does not need a matching آن (“that”).

Assuming نمی‌شود always means “physically impossible”

• Misreading: اینجا نمی‌شود عکس گرفت only as “Taking a photo is physically impossible here.”
• Better reading in many settings: “Photography is not allowed here.”
• Why: نمی‌شود frequently communicates a social or institutional rule. Use the situation and surrounding signs or conversation to infer the force.

Usage Notes

The impersonal past-stem pattern is especially useful in instructions, notices, formal explanations, and general advice. برای موفق شدن باید تمرین کرد (“To succeed, one must practise”) sounds detached and general. A personal form—باید تمرین کنی (“you must practise”)—is more directly addressed to one listener and can sound more forceful.

In spoken Persian, می‌شود and نمی‌شود are usually pronounced میشه (mishe) and نمیشه (nemishe). The spelling with و, as in می‌شود, remains standard in formal writing. You will also hear باید constantly in conversation; its exact English translation ranges from strong “must” to contextual “should.” Tone, relationship, and consequences determine the strength.

که after لازم است or ممکن است is optional in many short sentences. Including it can make a long clause easier to process. Omitting it often sounds smooth and economical: both ممکن است که دیر برسد and ممکن است دیر برسد mean “He/she may arrive late.”

English often uses passive phrases such as “Smoking is prohibited” or generic you. Persian may instead use an impersonal verb, but it can also use a noun-based or passive expression. Do not expect every English it is... sentence to map to one fixed Persian formula.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Completed possibilities

To express uncertainty about an action that may already have happened, Persian can use a perfect subjunctive: past participle + باشد. A past participle is the form ending in ـه that presents an action as completed.

• ممکن است اشتباه کرده باشم. — “I may have made a mistake.”
• شاید نامه را فرستاده باشند. — “Perhaps they have sent the letter.”

This pattern keeps the personal ending on باشم / باشند, while ممکن است and شاید remain unchanged.

Formal alternatives and shades of necessity

Formal writing may use می‌بایست or بایستی where everyday language favors باید. These forms can sound official, literary, or concerned with an obligation viewed from another time. Their tense interpretation varies with context, so باید is the safest productive choice in ordinary modern Persian.

Persian also grades necessity through vocabulary:

Persian expression	Approximate English force	Typical use
بهتر است...	it is better to...	Advice or recommendation
لازم است...	it is necessary to...	Stated necessity
باید...	must / have to / should	Broad obligation; strength depends on context
ضروری است...	it is essential to...	Formal or emphatic necessity
ممنوع است...	it is forbidden	Explicit prohibition, often on signs or in rules

These are not interchangeable in tone. بهتر است زود بروید offers advice; باید زود بروید imposes or reports an obligation. ورود ممنوع است is a formal notice meaning “Entry is prohibited,” whereas نمی‌شود وارد شد is a more conversational impersonal statement.

General actor versus hidden specific actor

An impersonal sentence does not always mean that no real actor exists. It means the speaker chooses not to identify one grammatically. باید بررسی کرد (“It must be examined / one must examine it”) can be useful when the responsible person is unknown, obvious, or deliberately left unstated. In professional writing, notice whether this vagueness is helpful or whether a personal clause such as کارشناسان باید بررسی کنند (“the specialists must examine it”) would be clearer.

Practice Tips

1. Make three versions of one idea. Start with رفتن “to go”: write باید بروم (personal necessity), باید رفت (general necessity), and می‌شود رفت (general possibility). Repeat with کردن، گفتن، پرداخت کردن.
2. Train the crucial negative contrast. For ten everyday actions, make pairs with نباید (“must not”) and لازم نیست (“do not need to”). This prevents a high-impact misunderstanding.
3. Listen for endings. In conversation, pause after باید، شاید، میشه, or لازم است and predict whether the next verb will identify a person or use a general past stem. Also learn to recognize spoken میشه / نمیشه alongside formal spelling.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Subjunctive Mood — explains forms such as بروم، بروید، and بیاید used after necessity and possibility expressions.