What it means
پیش پرداخت (pish-pardakht) is the Persian word for a down payment, an advance, money you pay up front before getting the thing. The compound is پیش (pish, before, in front of) plus پرداخت (pardakht, payment). Literally: the payment that comes before. It shows up in car purchases, real estate, custom orders, freelance contracts, anywhere a buyer pays a portion before delivery.
The word becomes especially weighty in the Iranian rental market. The rahn-o-ejare system (deposit-and-rent) lets a landlord take a large refundable deposit, the رهن (rahn), against lower monthly rent. In all-rahn arrangements, the pish-pardakht can reach 80% or more of the property’s value, returned in full when the tenant leaves. It functions as an interest-free loan to the landlord, who reinvests it elsewhere while the tenant lives in the unit.
How to use it
You say pish-pardakht when negotiating any deal that involves money up front. Real estate brokers, car salesmen, contractors, and tailors will all ask about it. The amount and the timing are points of haggling.
pish-pardakht-e mā chand mīshe?
How much is our down payment?
پیش پرداخت ما چند میشه؟
nīm-ī az pūl rā be onvān-e pish-pardakht dādam.
I paid half the money as a down payment.
نیمی از پول را به عنوان پیش پرداخت دادم.
Where it comes from
Both pieces are Pure Persian and old. پیش is the Middle Persian peš, the spatial and temporal in front of. پرداخت is the past stem of پرداختن (pardakhtan, to pay, originally to clear or to finish off), Middle Persian pardaxtan, where it carried the broader sense of completing or settling. The compound is a transparent, productive native formation. Modern commercial Persian has hundreds of similar پیش X compounds: پیشبینی (forecast), پیشخرید (pre-purchase), پیشدانشگاهی (pre-university). The pattern is alive and continues to generate new vocabulary.
In our voice
If you ever rent an apartment in Tehran, the pish-pardakht conversation is the conversation. Inflation, sanctions, and currency volatility have made the rahn portion absurd. Landlords prefer huge rahn payments because the money holds value better than future rent. Ask any returning expat which Iranian word ambushed them first, and pish-pardakht is on the shortlist.
References
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