کمک

What it means

کمک (komak) means help, assistance, or aid. On its own it is a noun: یه کمک بهم بکن (ye komak beham bokon, give me a hand). Combined with کردن (kardan, to do) it forms the compound verb کمک کردن (komak kardan), to help, which is one of the most common verb constructions in the language. A related compound is کمک گرفتن (komak gereftan), meaning to receive help or to get assistance from someone. The word entered Persian from Turkish, where yardım and komak both circulated in the early modern period, but today komak is so thoroughly Persian that speakers rarely register its origin.

How to use it

• می‌تونی کمکم کنی؟ (mi-tuni komak-am koni?) “Can you help me?”
• کمک لازم داری؟ (komak lâzem dâri?) “Do you need help?”
• ممنون از کمکت (mamnun az komak-et) “Thank you for your help.”
• بدون کمک تو نمی‌تونستم (bedune komak-e to nemi-tunestam) “I could not have done it without your help.”

Cultural note

Offering کمک is a gesture woven into Iranian social norms. When someone is carrying bags, struggling with a task, or looking confused, the immediate offer کمک لازم داری? (do you need help?) is expected and natural. Refusing help outright can feel abrupt; a polite decline usually softens the refusal. In formal or emergency contexts you will hear کمک! (komak!) as a plain cry for help, the Persian equivalent of shouting Help! Iranians also use کمک in compound forms like کمک هزینه (komak-e hazine, subsidy or financial aid) and کمک‌های اولیه (komak-hây-e avvaliye, first aid), extending the word into institutional vocabulary.

References

• Dehkhoda
• Vajehyab