Curriculum · Unit 1 · Lesson 2
The Sounds of Farsi I: â, a, kh
آب
After this lesson you can produce the deep â and the famous kh, hear bad vs bâd, sound local with the ân→un street shift, and understand Leila's five coaching words.
The phrase map
âb
water
let the â ring
nun
bread
street form of nân
khune
house · home
street form of khâne
bâbâ
dad
two calm â's
âre
yeah — casual yes
everyday yes
âghâ
sir · Mr.
that middle gh comes in Lesson 3
The dialogue
| Leila | Begu: âb. | Say: water. |
| Sam | Âb! | Water! |
| Leila | Âfarin! Begu: nun. | Well done! Say: bread. |
| Sam | Nun! | Bread! |
| Leila | Khube! Begu: khune. | Nice! Say: house. |
| Sam | Khune! | House! |
| Leila | Âfarin! | Well done! |
The buzz-free kh
It is not a k — it's air over the back of your tongue, like fogging a mirror or the ch in "Bach." Ladder: khhh → khu → khub → khune.
Street Farsi: ân → un
Books say nân and khâne; Tehran says nun and khune. This course teaches the street form first — it's what you'll hear in movies, songs, and kitchens.
🎧 Speak-along drill · 4 min
Headphones on, out loud, eyes free. Prompt → pause → you speak → native answer. This is where the lesson becomes yours.
Practice
Play the practice game for this lesson — listening rounds, matching, and dialogue replies, all in the real course voices. The PDF has 8 written exercises with an answer key.