Farsi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "اگر" in Farsi?

Q: How do you pronounce اگر in Farsi?

اگر is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /æˈɡær/. It means “if.” Rhymes loosely with "uh-GAR" — think of the word "cigar" and drop the "ci-": that's very close to اگر.

Rhymes loosely with "uh-GAR" — think of the word "cigar" and drop the "ci-": that's very close to اگر.

اگر /æˈɡær/

agar

Stress lands on the final syllable, گر ("gar"), which is the normal pattern for Persian words — don't let the first syllable soak up the emphasis the way English "IF" would.

Listen: اگر

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Sound it out

ا A short, neutral "a" like the "u" in "cup" or the first syllable of "about" — not the long "ah" that ا can represent elsewhere.

گ A hard "g" as in "go," always hard in Persian, never soft like the "g" in "gem."

ر A lightly rolled or tapped "r," similar to a Spanish or Italian single-tap "r," not the American retroflex "r."

Hear it in a sentence

اگر وقت داشته باشید، به من زنگ بزنید.

Agar vaght dāshte bāshid, be man zang bezanid.

If you have time, call me.

Listen: اگر وقت داشته باشید، به من زنگ بزنید.

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In اگر وقت داشته باشید، به من زنگ بزنید, اگر sets up a conditional clause exactly like English "if," and just as in English the condition comes before the result. Notice the polite plural/formal verb forms داشته باشید and بزنید (the -ید ending) — this sentence is addressed formally or to a group, which is a very common register for اگر-clauses in requests and instructions.

Where English speakers slip

The most common slip is stressing the first syllable ("Ah-gar") the way an English speaker instinctively stresses a short function word — Persian instead leans on the second syllable, "gar." A second, subtler mistake is softening the ر into an American "r"; keep it a quick, light tap.