What it means
اخراج (ekhrâj) means being dismissed or fired from a job. The word is borrowed directly from Arabic, where it comes from the three-letter root خ-ر-ج (kh-r-j), meaning to go out or expel. In Persian it is used in both formal documents and everyday speech. The closest opposite is استخدام (estekhdâm), which means hiring or employment. A softer synonym sometimes heard is برکناری (barkenâri), meaning removal from a post, which tends to appear in political or official contexts rather than ordinary workplaces.
How to use it
- اخراجم کردن. (ekhrâjam kardan.) “They fired me.”
- ترسیدم از اخراج. (tarsidam az ekhrâj.) “I was afraid of being fired.”
- اون کارمند اخراج شد. (oon kârmand ekhrâj shod.) “That employee was dismissed.”
- دلیل اخراجش چی بود؟ (dalile ekhrâjash chi bood?) “What was the reason for his dismissal?”
Cultural note
In Iran, labour law requires employers to obtain approval from the Islamic Labour Council (شورای اسلامی کار, shorâ-ye eslâmi-ye kâr) before formally dismissing a permanent employee, which makes اخراج a legally significant act rather than a casual one. In practice, many employers in smaller businesses still dismiss workers informally without following this process, and disputes are taken to the Ministry of Labour. The fear of اخراج is a common theme in Persian workplace humour and in popular television series set in office environments.