What it means
مقدار (meqdâr) means quantity or amount. It comes from Arabic, built on the root ق-د-ر (q-d-r), which relates to measure, power, and fate. The same root gives Persian قدرت (qodrat, power) and مقدر (moqaddar, fated). Meqdâr is the default word when talking about how much of something there is, whether a physical substance like water or sugar, or an abstract figure like a sum of money. A close synonym is اندازه (andâze), which leans more toward size or dimension rather than quantity in a numerical sense.
How to use it
- مقدار آب کافی نیست. (Meqdâr-e âb kâfi nist.) “The amount of water is not enough.”
- یه مقدار نمک اضافه کن. (Ye meqdâr namak ezâfe kon.) “Add a bit of salt.”
- مقدار دارو رو رعایت کن. (Meqdâr-e dâru ro re’âyat kon.) “Follow the medication dosage.”
- مقدار پول لازم چقدره؟ (Meqdâr-e pul-e lâzem chaqadre?) “How much money is needed?”
Cultural note
In Persian cooking instructions and recipes, meqdâr is the standard term for an amount or portion, often paired with به اندازه کافی (be andâze-ye kâfi, enough) or حدود (hodud, approximately). In scientific and technical Persian, meqdâr also functions as the equivalent of “value” in mathematical expressions, so you will see it in physics textbooks alongside equations. Its Arabic origin has been fully absorbed into neutral everyday Persian.