What it means
پیچ خوردن (pich khordan) is built from two native Persian elements: پیچ (pich), meaning a twist, coil, or curve, and خوردن (khordan), a versatile light verb used in dozens of Persian compounds. Together they mean to twist, to bend, or to turn. In a driving or navigation context, the phrase describes a road curving or a vehicle making a turn. The same phrase is used when a road bends: جاده پیچ میخوره (the road curves). It also describes a physical sprain: مچم پیچ خورد (I sprained my wrist). Context makes the meaning clear in each case.
How to use it
- جاده اینجا پیچ میخوره، آروم برو. (jâde inja pich mi-khore, ârum boro.) “The road bends here, go slowly.”
- مچم پیچ خورد، خیلی درد داره. (machham pich khord, kheyli dard dâre.) “I sprained my wrist, it hurts a lot.”
- بعد از چراغ قرمز پیچ میخوری سمت چپ. (ba’d az cherâgh-e qermez pich mi-khori samte chap.) “After the traffic light you turn left.”
- ماشین تو اون پیچ پیچ خورد و ایستاد. (mâshin tu oon pich, pich khord o istâd.) “The car took that bend and stopped.”
Cultural note
Persian makes heavy use of خوردن as a light verb to build compound verbs: زمین خوردن (to fall), تصادف کردن (to have an accident), پیچ خوردن (to twist or turn). This pattern is one of the most productive in colloquial Farsi. Driving instruction in Iran frequently uses پیچیدن and پیچ خوردن interchangeably, though پیچیدن is slightly more deliberate in register and پیچ خوردن captures the sense of a bend happening to the road itself.