دراز

What it means

دراز (derâz) is a native Persian adjective with three overlapping senses that share the idea of length or extension. First, it describes something long in spatial dimension: a long road, a long rope, a long day. Second, in older or literary usage it describes a person as tall, though قد بلند (ghad-e boland) is the more common modern phrase for that sense. Third, derâz appears in two high-frequency compound verbs: دراز کشیدن (derâz keshidan), meaning to lie down or stretch out on a surface, and دراز کردن (derâz kardan), meaning to extend or hold out something, as in extending your hand or stretching a cord. The adjective روز دراز (ruz-e derâz) is a set phrase meaning a long and tedious day, and it carries a mildly weary tone. Derâz is purely Persian, with cognates visible in other Iranian languages, and it has been in continuous use from classical Persian poetry through modern colloquial speech.

How to use it

• رفت دراز کشید (raft derâz keshid) “He went and lay down.”
• دستت رو دراز نکن (dast-et ro derâz nakon) “Don’t reach out your hand / don’t beg.”
• چه روز درازی بود (che ruz-e derâzi bud) “What a long day that was.”
• موهاش خیلی درازه (mu-hâsh kheyli derâze) “Her hair is very long.”

Cultural note

The phrase دست دراز کردن (dast derâz kardan), literally to stretch out one’s hand, carries a social charge in Persian beyond its literal meaning. It implies asking for something you should not need, overstepping a boundary, or even petty theft depending on context. Saying به مال مردم دست درازی نکن (be mâl-e mardom dast-derâzi nakon) means do not reach for what belongs to others. This extended meaning turns a simple spatial verb into a moral warning, something worth knowing early.

References

• Dehkhoda
• Vajehyab