قایم

What it means

قایم (ghâyem) carries several meanings that are related through a shared idea of being fixed or firm. In its most common colloquial use it means hidden: قایم شدن (ghâyem shodan) means to hide oneself, and قایم کردن (ghâyem kardan) means to hide something. The word also works as an informal adjective meaning solid, strong, or great, where someone might say کارت قایمه (kâret ghâyeme) to mean “your work is solid” or “good job.” The word comes from Arabic قَائِم (qâ’im), the active participle of the verb qâma meaning to stand or to rise, so the original sense is one who is upright or standing firm. In Persian the sense shifted: something that stands still and does not move is something that is not moving around in the open, which gives the colloquial meaning of hidden or concealed. The transition from Arabic active participle to Persian colloquial adjective is a clear example of how borrowed words reshape themselves in a new language.

How to use it

• بریم قایم موشک بازی کنیم. (berim ghâyem mushak bâzi konim.) “Let’s go play hide-and-seek.”
• پولامو جایی قایم کردم. (pulâmo jâyi ghâyem kardam.) “I hid my money somewhere.”
• قایم شو، دارن میان. (ghâyem sho, dâran miyân.) “Hide, they are coming.”
• این رستوران خیلی قایمه. (in restorân kheyli ghâyeme.) “This restaurant is really great.”

Cultural note

قایم موشک (ghâyem mushak), literally hide-the-mouse or hide-and-seek, is one of the most universally recognized children’s games in Iran. The name appears in literature and proverbs as a metaphor for any situation where someone or something keeps vanishing from view. In adult speech, telling someone قایم نشو (ghâyem nasho), do not hide, is a direct way of asking them to stop being evasive or to be transparent about their intentions.

References

• Dehkhoda
• Vajehyab