What it means
قطار (ghatâr) is borrowed from Arabic قِطار (qitār), which originally described a caravan: a line of camels tied together, traveling in single file. The image of a long connected line transferred naturally to the railway train when rail networks spread across the region in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In modern Persian, قطار is the universal word for any train: intercity rail, high-speed rail, and urban metro lines. The metro is sometimes also called مترو (metro), but قطار works for all of them.
How to use it
- قطار ساعت چنده؟ (ghatâr sâat chande?) “What time is the train?”
- قطار تهران-اصفهان چند ساعته؟ (ghatâr-e Tehrân-Esfahân chand sâate?) “How many hours is the Tehran-Isfahan train?”
- بلیط قطار گرفتم. (belit-e ghatâr gereftam.) “I got a train ticket.”
- قطار دیر کرد. (ghatâr dir kard.) “The train was late.”
Cultural note
Iran’s rail network, operated by the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways (راهآهن, râh-âhan), connects most major cities and is a popular choice for long-distance travel, valued for its relative affordability and comfort compared to buses. The Tehran-Isfahan and Tehran-Mashhad routes are especially busy. Overnight sleeper trains (with compartments called کوپه, kupé, from French coupé) remain a classic travel experience for Iranians.