What it means
کمخونی (kam-khuni) means “anemia,” the medical condition in which the blood lacks sufficient red blood cells or hemoglobin. It is a transparent Persian compound: کم (kam) means “little” or “insufficient,” and خون (khun) means “blood,” with the suffix ی (-i) forming an abstract noun, so the word literally means “condition of having little blood.” This is the everyday and clinical term used across all registers in Iran. The loanword آنمی (ânemi, from Greek via French or English) exists but is far less common than کمخونی in both spoken and written Persian.
How to use it
- دکتر گفت کمخونی داری. (doktor goft kam-khuni dâri.) “The doctor said you have anemia.”
- کمخونی باعث خستگیِ زیادم شده. (kam-khuni bâes-e khastegi-ye ziâd-am shode.) “Anemia has caused a lot of fatigue for me.”
- آهن بخور، برای کمخونیته. (âhan bokhor, barâye kam-khuni-te.) “Eat iron-rich food, it is for your anemia.”
- آزمایش خون نشون داد کمخونی داری. (âzmâyesh-e khun neshun dâd kam-khuni dâri.) “The blood test showed you have anemia.”
Cultural note
Iron-deficiency anemia is among the most commonly diagnosed conditions in Iranian women and adolescents, and کمخونی is a household word in Iran. Home remedies for کمخونی, such as eating pomegranate or liver, circulate widely in Iranian family culture alongside medical treatment. Because the word is fully transparent, Iranians who have never attended a biology class understand it immediately as “not enough blood,” which also makes patient communication in clinical settings straightforward.