Farsi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "سال" in Farsi?

Q: How do you pronounce سال in Farsi?

سال is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /sɒːl/. It means “year.” Rhymes with the English word "doll" said with a British-sounding open "ah," or think of "sol" as in "solar" with a longer vowel.

Rhymes with the English word "doll" said with a British-sounding open "ah," or think of "sol" as in "solar" with a longer vowel.

سال /sɒːl/

sāl

One syllable — hold the long ā vowel (as in "father") clearly, then finish with a clean "l," without adding any extra vowel sound after it.

Listen: سال

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Sound it out

سـ A plain "s" as in "sun."

ا A long, open "ā," like the "a" in "father" — held longer than a typical English short "a."

ل A clear "l" as in "lamp," closing the word crisply.

Hear it in a sentence

امسال سال خوبی بود.

Emsāl sāl-e khubi bud.

This year was a good year.

Listen: امسال سال خوبی بود.

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In امسال سال خوبی بود, امسال ("this year") again contains سال inside it, just like امروز contained روز — این/ام + time word is a common pattern for "this [time period]" in Persian. سال خوبی ("a good year") uses the indefinite -ی on خوبی as the predicate, and بود ("was," the past tense of "to be") closes the sentence, matching English "This year was a good year."

Where English speakers slip

English speakers sometimes round the vowel too far, making it sound closer to the "o" in "soul," or shorten it toward the vowel in "Sal" (the English name) — Persian سال needs the fuller, open "ah" of "father," held a beat longer than English speakers expect.