بله و خیر
baleh va kheyr
The Persian phrase for "yes and no" is بله و خیر (baleh va kheyr).
This phrase is used to indicate that a situation or question cannot be answered with a simple "yes" or "no".
Meaning: indicating there is no simple "yes" or "no" answer (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of بله (yes), و (and) and خیر (no).
Which one should you use?
In colloquial spoken Persian, you may hear the informal alternative آره و نه, which translates to "yeah and no".
How do you pronounce it?
baleh va kheyr
Did you know?
- Because of the social concept of 'Taarof', a person might repeatedly say خیر to a gift or a treat before finally accepting it.
- While the phrase uses خیر for 'no', the word itself actually means 'goodness' or 'abundance' in Arabic.
- If you use the formal بله و خیر, you might sound more like a poet or a news anchor than a person in a casual cafe.
Examples in context
- بله، حتماً می‌توانم به شما کمک کنم.Yes, I can definitely help you.
- متأسفانه نمی‌توانم این درخواست را بپذیرم.Unfortunately, I cannot accept this request.
- آره، مطمئناً می‌تونم بهت کمک کنم.Yeah, I can definitely help you.
- نه، ممنون، امشب نمی‌تونم برم بیرون.No, thank you, I can't go out tonight.
Example conversation
Mohammad and Niloufar are discussing if a certain movie was good.
- محمد Mohammadفیلم را دوست داشتی؟Film rā doust dāshti?Did you like the movie?
- نیلوفر Niloufarراستش بله و خیر.Rāstesh bale o kheyr.To be honest, yes and no.
- محمد Mohammadیعنی چه؟Ya'ni che?What do you mean?
- نیلوفر Niloufarداستانش خوب بود ولی بازیگرش بد بود.Dāstānash khoub boud vali bāzigarash bad boud.The story was good but the actor was bad.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries خیر, و, CC BY-SA 4.0.
