What it means
بیزحمت (bi-zahmat) is one of the most common politeness markers in spoken Persian. Literally it means without trouble or without bother. The prefix بی (bi) is Persian and means without. The root زحمت (zahmat) comes from Arabic زحمة (zahma), meaning trouble, burden, or effort. Together they form a phrase used exactly as English speakers use please, placed at the start or end of a request to soften it. A very close synonym and near-equivalent is لطفاً (lotfan, please), which is also widely used. بیزحمت tends to feel slightly warmer and more conversational than لطفاً in everyday speech.
How to use it
- بیزحمت دربو ببند. (bi-zahmat daro beband.) “Please close the door.”
- بیزحمت میتونی بگی ساعت چنده؟ (bi-zahmat mituni begi sâat chande?) “Could you please tell me what time it is?”
- بیزحمت یه لیوان آب بیار. (bi-zahmat ye livoon âb biâr.) “Please bring a glass of water.”
- بیزحمت صبر کن، الان میام. (bi-zahmat sabr kon, alân miyâm.) “Please wait, I’ll be right there.”
Cultural note
In Iranian ta’arof culture, softening a request is not optional politeness but a social expectation. بیزحمت achieves this efficiently by literally acknowledging that you are asking someone to make an effort and framing it as something you hope causes no trouble. It is used freely across age groups and social contexts, from asking a stranger for directions to asking a colleague to pass something at a meeting. Unlike formal register phrases, bi-zahmat fits comfortably in both casual and semi-formal situations without sounding stiff.