What it means
نسخه (noskhe) means prescription, but also copy or written text. It is borrowed from Arabic نسخة (nuskha), from the root n-s-kh, meaning to copy or transcribe, the same root that gives Arabic نسخ (naskh), the calligraphy style. In the medical context, نسخه is the paper a doctor writes out listing medicines and dosages that the patient takes to the pharmacy. The word نسخهپیچی (noskhe-pichi) means dispensing medicine. You will also encounter نسخه used outside medicine for a recipe or a printed copy of a document.
How to use it
- دکتر برام نسخه نوشت. (doktor baram noskhe nevesht.) “The doctor wrote me a prescription.”
- نسخهات رو به داروخانه بده. (noskhe-at ro be darukhane bede.) “Give your prescription to the pharmacy.”
- بدون نسخه این دارو رو نمیدن. (bedun-e noskhe in daru ro nemidan.) “They won’t give this medicine without a prescription.”
- نسخهی پزشک رو گم کردم. (noskhe-ye pezeshk ro gom kardam.) “I lost the doctor’s prescription.”
Cultural note
In Iran, many medications that require a prescription in Western countries are sold over the counter at داروخانه (pharmacy), and pharmacists regularly counsel patients without a written نسخه. However, for controlled or expensive medications, the نسخه is essential and must carry the doctor’s stamp and registration number. Electronic prescriptions have been introduced gradually in the Iranian health system, though paper نسخه remains common outside major cities.