What it means
دستگیره (dastgire) means “handle” or “doorknob,” the part you grip to open or pull something. It is a pure Persian word, built from دست (dast), meaning “hand,” plus گیره (gire), from گرفتن (gereftan), meaning “to grip” or “to hold.” It covers a door handle, a drawer pull, a cabinet knob, and the grab handle inside a car or bus. When you want to be specific about a door, people often say دستگیره در (dastgire-ye dar). A close relative is دستگیر (dastgir), which is a different idea: that one means “arrested” or “captured,” so keep the final ه to stay in the world of handles.
How to use it
- دستگیره در شکسته (dastgire-ye dar shekaste) “the door handle is broken”
- دستگیره رو بکش پایین (dastgire ro bekesh pâyin) “pull the handle down”
- دستت رو بذار رو دستگیره (dastet ro bezâr ru dastgire) “put your hand on the handle”
- دستگیره کابینت کنده شده (dastgire-ye kâbinet kande shode) “the cabinet handle has come off”
Cultural note
In older Iranian houses and traditional doors, you still see the famous pair of door knockers, a heavier کوبه for men and a lighter حلقه for women, each making a different sound so the household knew who was at the door. Modern apartment doors use an ordinary lever دستگیره, and a loose or broken one is a common reason to call the building’s سرایدار or a handyman. For many lever handles you pull or press the handle down to open the door, so بکش پایین (pull down) is something you hear a lot.