What it means
بیکار (bikâr) means unemployed, out of work, or idle. The word is built from two native Persian elements: the prefix بی (bi), meaning without, and کار (kâr), meaning work. Together they describe someone who has no job, but in everyday speech بیکار is also used more loosely for anyone who is just sitting around doing nothing. The word can carry a judgmental tone depending on context. A more formal term for unemployment as an economic condition is بیکاری (bikâri), which is the noun form. The opposite is شاغل (shâghel), meaning employed, which belongs to a more formal register.
How to use it
- چند وقته بیکارم، دنبال کار میگردم. (chand vaghte bikâr-am, donbâl-e kâr migardam) “I’ve been unemployed for a while, I’m looking for work.”
- اون بیکاره، همش خونهست. (oon bikâr-e, hame-sh khune-st) “He’s idle, he’s home all the time.”
- نرخ بیکاری امسال بالاست. (nerkh-e bikâri emsal bâlâst) “The unemployment rate is high this year.”
- بیکار نشین، یه کاری بکن. (bikâr nashin, ye kâri bokon) “Don’t sit idle, do something.”
Cultural note
بیکار carries a social weight in Iranian culture, where work is closely tied to adult identity and family responsibility. Calling someone بیکار can be a neutral statement of fact or a mild criticism depending on tone. Youth unemployment has been a prominent issue in Iran for decades, and the word appears frequently in news media and political discourse. In colloquial speech, بیکار also doubles as a light insult meaning someone who has nothing better to do.