What it means
چهارراه (chahârrah) means “crossroads” or “four-way junction.” It is a compound of two fully Persian words: چهار (chahâr, four) and راه (râh, road or way). Together they describe exactly what you see: a point where four roads meet. Iranians use چهارراه as a navigation landmark in the same way English speakers say “the intersection” or “the crossroads.” A closely related word is تقاطع (taqâto), which covers any intersection, but چهارراه is the everyday spoken word and specifically implies four roads meeting at one point.
How to use it
- سر چهارراه وایسا. (sar-e chahârrah vâysa.) “Wait at the crossroads.”
- از چهارراه بپیچ راست. (az chahârrah bepich râst.) “Turn right at the crossroads.”
- خونهام نزدیک چهارراه ولیعصره. (khuneam nazdik-e chahârrah-e vali-asre.) “My house is near Vali Asr crossroads.”
- دو تا چهارراه جلوتر پارک کردم. (do tâ chahârrah jelo-tar pârk kardam.) “I parked two crossroads ahead.”
Cultural note
Crossroads in Iranian cities are often named after the neighborhood, a notable building nearby, or a historical figure, and those names function as full addresses in everyday speech. Saying “چهارراه ولیعصر” or “چهارراه پارک وی” tells a Tehrani exactly where you mean without needing a street number. Before GPS became universal, the ability to name and count چهارراه was the core skill of navigating any Iranian city on foot or by taxi.