What it means
دوش گرفتن (dush gereftan) means to take a shower. The noun دوش (dush) is borrowed from French douche, which entered Persian along with modern plumbing technology in the twentieth century. The light verb گرفتن (gereftan) means to take or to receive and is native Persian. One important note: دوش (dush) is a homonym in Persian. The same word also means shoulder and can mean last night in some dialects. Context always makes the meaning clear. There is no common synonym for this phrase: dush gereftan is the standard, neutral term used by all speakers.
How to use it
- رفتم دوش گرفتم. (raftam dush gereftam.) “I went and had a shower.”
- قبل از خواب دوش میگیرم. (qabl az khâb dush migiram.) “I shower before bed.”
- یه دوش سریع گرفتم. (ye dush-e sariʿ gereftam.) “I took a quick shower.”
- آب دوش سرده. (âb-e dush sarde.) “The shower water is cold.”
Cultural note
Before modern plumbing, Iranians bathed in public bathhouses called حمام (hammâm), which were social spaces as much as hygienic ones. The shift to home showers over the twentieth century changed daily routines significantly. Hammâms still exist in Iran, especially in older neighbourhoods, but are now visited more for the experience and for traditional scrubbing treatments than out of necessity.