What it means
اهلی (ahli) is an adjective meaning domestic, tame, or domesticated. Its most common use is with animals: a گربهی اهلی (gorbe-ye ahli) is a domestic cat, a سگ اهلی (sag-e ahli) is a domestic dog, and حیوان اهلی (heyavân-e ahli) is the general phrase for any domestic animal. The direct opposite is وحشی (vahshi), meaning wild. The verb form is اهلی کردن (ahli kardan), to tame or to domesticate. Outside the animal world, Iranians sometimes use ahli informally to describe a person who is gentle, easy-going, or domesticated in temperament, though this is a secondary and figurative use.
How to use it
- گربهی اهلی دارم (gorbe-ye ahli dâram) “I have a domestic cat.”
- این اسب رو اهلی کردن (in asb ro ahli kardan) “They tamed this horse.”
- حیوانات اهلی از آدم نمیترسن (heyavânât-e ahli az âdam nemi-tarsan) “Domestic animals are not afraid of people.”
- اون گرگه خیلی اهلیه (un gorg-e kheyli ahlieh) “That wolf is very tame.”
Cultural note
The word اهلی captures an important boundary in Iranian thinking about animals. The category وحشی (vahshi) covers anything untamed and potentially dangerous, while ahli covers everything in the human domestic sphere. In traditional Iranian households, keeping chickens, sheep, or a few goats was common, and the word ahli was part of everyday rural vocabulary. Today urban Iranians use it mainly for pets and in discussions of livestock farming and animal husbandry.
References
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