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خیلی. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
خیلی, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
خیلی in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
خیلی you have here. The definition of the word
خیلی will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
خیلی, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Persian
Etymology
From خیل (xayl / xeyl, “squadron of cavalry; (by extension) army”) + ـی (-ē / -i, indefinite article), literally “an army of”. First usage meaning "very much, many" was in Gulistan in 1058.[1]
Pronunciation
| Readings
|
| Classical reading?
|
xaylē
|
| Dari reading?
|
xēlī, xaylē
|
| Iranian reading?
|
xeyli
|
| Tajik reading?
|
xele
|
Adverb
خیلی • (xaylē / xeyli)
- very
Adjective
خیلی از • (xaylē az / xeyli az)
- many of
خیلی از دوستام فیلمای آمریکایی رو دوست دارن.- xeyli az dustâm filmâye âmrikâi ro dust dâran.
- A lot of my friends like American movies.
Usage notes
- بسیار and خیلی are both used in all dialects. In Iranian Persian خیلی (xeyli) is used most of the time and بسیار (besyâr) acts as a more emphatic version of خیلی (xeyli). The opposite is true in Tajik Persian. In Dari بسیار (bisyār) is slightly more common but neither word is more emphatic than the other.[2]
- The classical pronunciation of خَیْلی (xaylē) has been lost in most dialects. While the classical pronunciation is still official in Standard Dari,[3] the pronunciation /xeːliː/ is much more frequent in normal speech.
- In the Tehran dialect, it assumes the variant form خیله (xeyle) when used in the phrase خیله خب (xeyle xob, “OK”), but otherwise remains خیلی (xeyli).[4]
Descendants
References
- ^ According to Dehkhoda, the semantic shift is from Saadi Shirazi's Gulistān:
1258, Saadi Shirazi, Gulistan:اندک اندک خیلی شود و قطره قطره سیلی گردد- andak-andak xaylē šawad wa qatra-qatra saylē gardad
- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- ^ “Intro to Tajik Persian”, in Persian Language Online, 2020 June 12: “Tajik хеле/ḫele may be more intense than бисёр/bisyār, where as the Iranian خیلی/ḫeylī is less intense than بسیار/besyār. The classical pronunciation of خیلی is ḫaylē, which has not been retained by the common pronunciation of either varieties.”
- ^ “خیلی”, in قاموس کبیر افغانستان [qāmūs-i kabīr-i afğānistān, The Great Dictionary of Afghanistan] (in Persian), Afghan Dictionary, 2023
- ^ “خیله خب”, in Vajehyab Multilingual dictionary, (Can we date this quote?)