What it means
متر مربع (metr-e morabba) is the standard Persian term for “square metre,” the SI unit of area equal to the area of a square with one-metre sides. It is a compound noun phrase linking متر (metr), borrowed into Persian from French metre, with مربع (morabba), an Arabic-origin adjective meaning “squared” or “made into a square” (from the Arabic root ر-ب-ع, meaning “four”). The two words together give you the meaning “metre, squared.” In everyday use, متر alone is often shorthand for متر مربع in contexts where area is clearly the topic, such as describing apartment sizes.
How to use it
- این آپارتمان هشتاد متر مربعه. (In âpârtmân hashtâd metr-e morabba-ye.) “This apartment is eighty square metres.”
- قیمت هر متر مربع چنده؟ (Qeymat-e har metr-e morabba chande?) “What is the price per square metre?”
- باغچهمون پنجاه متر مربعه. (Bâghcheamun panjâh metr-e morabba-ye.) “Our garden is fifty square metres.”
- اتاق ده متر مربع داره. (Otâq dah metr-e morabba dâre.) “The room is ten square metres.”
Cultural note
In Iran, apartment sizes are almost always stated in متر مربع, and this figure is one of the first things buyers and renters ask about. Real estate listings, property deeds, and mortgage calculations all use متر مربع as the baseline measurement. Because urban housing in Tehran and other major cities has become expensive relative to average incomes, the price per متر مربع has become a key economic indicator that Iranians follow closely.