What it means
دکمه (dokme) means button, borrowed from the Turkish word düğme. It refers primarily to the small disc or knob sewn onto clothing to fasten it through a buttonhole, but in everyday modern Persian it has extended to mean any kind of push button, including keys on a phone, remote control, or keyboard. There is no single close synonym: دکمه covers both senses. The word is fully integrated into Persian and feels entirely natural, with no sense of being foreign.
How to use it
- یه دکمهی پیرهنم کنده. (Ye dokme-ye pirhan-am kande.) “One of my shirt buttons has come off.”
- دکمه رو فشار بده. (Dokme ro feshâr bede.) “Press the button.”
- دکمههای این کت قشنگه. (Dokme-hâ-ye in kot ghashange.) “The buttons on this coat are beautiful.”
- دکمهی خاموش رو زدم. (Dokme-ye khâmush ro zadam.) “I pressed the off button.”
Cultural note
Turkish loanwords entered Persian in significant numbers during the centuries of Turkic dynastic rule over Iran, including the Seljuk, Ilkhanid, Timurid, and Safavid periods. Dressmaking and textile vocabulary was one area where Turkish terminology left a lasting mark on Persian. Today دکمه is used so naturally that most Persian speakers would not identify it as a Turkish borrowing. The word’s extension from clothing buttons to electronic push-buttons reflects how everyday vocabulary adapts to new technology without needing new words.