What it means
گوشی (gushi) means mobile phone in everyday spoken Persian. The word comes from گوش (gush), meaning ear, plus the suffix ی, giving the literal sense of earpiece or handset. It is a native Persian word that Iranians use in all informal conversations, while the formal term موبایل (mobayil, borrowed from English) also circulates. When an Iranian says گوشیمو گم کردم, they mean they lost their phone, not a medical device.
How to use it
- گوشیت رو بذار رو میز. (gushit ro bezar ru miz.) “Put your phone on the table.”
- گوشیم شارژ نداره. (gushim sharzh nadare.) “My phone has no charge.”
- یه گوشی جدید خریدم. (ye gushi jadid kharidam.) “I bought a new phone.”
- میتونی گوشیتو بهم قرض بدی؟ (mituni gushito beham gharz bedi?) “Can you lend me your phone?”
Cultural note
Iran has one of the highest smartphone penetration rates in the Middle East, and گوشی is so embedded in daily speech that formal alternatives rarely appear in conversation. Iranians refer to every type of handset, from basic feature phones to the latest smartphones, simply as گوشی. The word also carries the older meaning of telephone receiver, so context makes the distinction clear.