What it means
هر وقت (har vaqt) means “whenever” or “every time that,” and is one of the first temporal conjunctions Persian learners encounter. هر (har) is a pure-Persian word meaning “every” or “any,” while وقت (vaqt) is an Arabic loanword meaning “time” (from the Arabic root و-ق-ت), making the compound a mixed-origin expression. In formal written Persian you may see هر زمان (har zamân) instead, which carries a slightly more elevated register. In colloquial speech, هر وقت is completely standard and sounds natural at all ages.
How to use it
- هر وقت دلت خواست، بیا. (Har vaqt delat khâst, biâ.) “Come whenever you feel like it.”
- هر وقت غمگین میشم، موزیک گوش میدم. (Har vaqt ghamgin misham, muzik gush midam.) “Whenever I feel sad, I listen to music.”
- هر وقت ایران بودم، چلوکباب میخوردم. (Har vaqt Irân budam, chelow kabâb mikhurdam.) “Whenever I was in Iran, I ate chelow kabab.”
- هر وقت زنگ زدی، جواب میدم. (Har vaqt zang zadi, javâb midam.) “Whenever you call, I’ll answer.”
Cultural note
وقت entered Persian from Arabic many centuries ago and is now so thoroughly embedded in the language that most native speakers do not perceive it as a loanword. The pair هر وقت is especially common in invitations and open-ended promises in Iranian culture, where a host saying هر وقت خواستی بیا (har vaqt khâsti biâ, “come whenever you want”) is a warm, standing invitation rather than a vague brush-off. At A2 level, learning هر وقت alongside هر جا (har jâ, “wherever”) and هر کس (har kas, “whoever”) helps learners grasp the productive هر plus question-word pattern.