اتاق مهمان

اتاق مهمان (otâq-e mehmân) is the guest room, but the cultural weight is bigger than the noun. In Iran, hosting is a duty, and having a room ready for it is sacred.

What it actually means

اتاق مهمان is a guest room: a bedroom kept clean and ready for visiting family, friends, or out-of-town guests. The phrase is built on the ezafe construction اتاق (otâq) “room” + مهمان (mehmân) “guest.” In contemporary apartments, اتاق مهمان is the second bedroom, used for storage during the week and pressed into service the moment a relative announces a visit. In older or larger Iranian houses, the related word اتاق پذیرایی (otâq-e pazirâi) “reception room” or مهمان‌خانه (mehmân-khâne) “guest house, guest hall” referred to a formal sitting room reserved entirely for receiving visitors, often the most beautifully decorated room in the home. Both مهمان and اتاق are Iranian-Turkic loans long settled into the language.

How to say it

Standard Tehrani vowel reduction: â → u inside مهمان gives مهمون. The ezafe -e remains.

How to use it

• اتاق مهمون رو آماده کن، عمو داره میاد. · otâq-e mehmun ro âmâde kon, amu dâre miyâd. · Get the guest room ready, uncle’s coming. (colloquial)
• خانه ما اتاق مهمان جداگانه دارد. · khâne-ye mâ otâq-e mehmân-e jodâgâne dârad. · Our house has a separate guest room.
• شب در اتاق مهمان خوابیدم. · shab dar otâq-e mehmân khâbidam. · I slept in the guest room that night.

Common pairings

• اتاق پذیرایی (otâq-e pazirâi) “reception/sitting room”
• مهمان‌خانه (mehmân-khâne) “guest hall, formal reception room”
• اتاق مهمان آماده (otâq-e mehmân-e âmâde) “a ready guest room”

Cultural note

Iranian hospitality treats hosting as one of the central social duties, and having a guest room ready, or at least a clearable couch, is part of how families measure their own home. Even small two-bedroom apartments will reserve the second room as اتاق مهمان, used for storage and ironing the rest of the year, then transformed within an hour the moment a visiting relative confirms the date. In older homes, the مهمان‌خانه was its own institution: a formal room with the best carpet, the best curtains, the silver tea service, the framed family photographs, opened only when guests came. Many older Iranians remember being told as children not to play in that room. The room was for the visitors. Welcoming them well was a matter of family honor.

Related

You’ll see this word together with اتاق خواب (otâq-e khâb) “bedroom” and مهمان (mehmân) “guest.” For more on Iranian hospitality customs, see our unwritten rules of Iranian hospitality.