What it means
فروشنده (forushande) means a salesperson, seller, or vendor. It is a native Persian agent noun formed from the present stem of فروختن (forukhtan), the Persian verb meaning to sell, with the agentive suffix ـنده (-ande) that turns a verb into the person who performs it. The word covers a wide range of contexts: a shop assistant, a street vendor, or a sales representative at a company. Its counterpart is خریدار (kharidâr), meaning buyer or customer. فروشنده carries no connotation of prestige or lack of it and simply names the person on the selling side of a transaction.
How to use it
- فروشنده قیمت رو گفت. (forushande qeymat ro goft.) “The salesperson told me the price.”
- میخوام فروشنده بشم. (mikhâm forushande besham.) “I want to become a salesperson.”
- فروشندههای این مغازه خیلی مودبن. (forushande-hây-e in maghâze kheyli moaddab-an.) “The salespeople in this shop are very polite.”
- اون فروشندهی خوبیه، هر چی داری میفروشه. (un forushande-ye khubi-ye, har chi dâri mi-forushe.) “He is a good salesman, he can sell anything you have.”
Cultural note
In Iranian bazaar culture, the relationship between a فروشنده and a regular customer goes well beyond a simple transaction. Shopkeepers often offer tea, remember a customer’s preferences, and extend credit to familiar faces. Bargaining (چانه زدن, châne zadan) is expected in traditional markets, and a skilled فروشنده is expected to hold firm politely while giving the customer a sense of having won a better price. In formal retail and corporate settings the word فروشنده is also the standard job title, equivalent to sales associate or sales representative on a business card.