What it means
پشم (pashm) is the everyday Persian word for wool, the soft fibre that comes from sheep and some other animals such as goats and camels. It is a genuine Persian word with a direct line back to Middle Persian pašm and further into older Indo-Iranian languages. پشم can refer to raw fleece still on the animal, cleaned and spun yarn, or woven woollen cloth. A common related word is پشمی (pashmi), meaning woollen or made of wool, which you will see on clothing labels.
How to use it
- این ژاکت از پشمه. (in zhâket az pashme.) “This sweater is made of wool.”
- پشم گوسفند رو میچینن. (pashm-e gusfand ro michinn.) “They shear the wool from the sheep.”
- جوراب پشمی پام رو گرم نگه میداره. (jurâb-e pashmi pâm ro garm negah midâre.) “Woollen socks keep my feet warm.”
- این فرش پشم خالصه. (in farsh pashm-e khâlese.) “This carpet is pure wool.”
Cultural note
Wool has been central to Iranian material culture for thousands of years. The hand-knotted Persian carpet, one of Iran’s most famous exports, is traditionally woven from wool on a cotton or silk foundation. Nomadic tribes such as the Qashqai and Bakhtiari have long kept sheep not only for meat but for their wool, which they spin and weave into carpets, kilims, and garments. The word پشم also appears in informal speech as mild slang, but its primary meaning remains entirely practical and everyday.