ouvrir

French

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French ouvrir, from Old French ovrir, obrir, from Vulgar Latin *operīre, alteration of Classical Latin aperīre (“to open”), perhaps under the influence of cooperīre (“to cover”) (whence couvrir). Cognate with Italian aprire; Portuguese and Spanish abrir; Catalan obrir.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /u.vʁiʁ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• (Louisiana) IPA^(key): [uvæɾ], [ɾuvɾɪɾ]
• Rhymes: -iʁ

Verb

ouvrir

1. (transitive) to open
2. (transitive) to begin, to initiate

   À peine arrivé, il a ouvert les hostilités.

   He initiated hostilities almost as soon as he arrived.

3. (reflexive) to open (of a door or a flower)
4. (reflexive) to open, to begin

   La séquence s’ouvre sur une scène de nuit.

   The sequence opens with a night scene.

5. to turn on, to switch on, to put on (of a device or an appliance)
6. to open it or the door, to answer it or the door, to get it

   On sonne à la porte. Je vais ouvrir.

   There's someone at the door; I'll open/answer/get it.

   Sophie, ouvre-moi, je voudrais te parler !

   Sophie, open the door; I want to talk to you!

   Allez, arrête tes bêtises et va ouvrir à Patrick ; il doit avoir froid dehors.

   Stop being silly and open the door for Patrick; he must be cold outside.

7. (reflexive) to cut something open, to gash something (of a part of one's body)

   Le gardien de but a plongé pour rattraper le ballon, s’est cogné contre le poteau et s’est ouvert l’arcade sourcilière.

   The goalkeeper dived to catch the ball, banged himself on the goalpost and cut his eyebrow open.

8. (reflexive) to open onto, to lead into (+ sur)

   Cette porte s’ouvre sur le jardin.

   This door opens onto the garden.

9. (intransitive) to open onto, to overlook, to look onto (of a door or a window) (+ sur)

   La porte ouvre sur la rue.

   The door opens onto the street.

10. (reflexive) to open up to, to be open to, to be exposed to, to get a feel for (+ à)

    Sa fille s’est ouverte à la musique sur le piano familial.

    The girl got a feel for music playing her family's piano.

11. (reflexive) to open up to, to confide in (+ à)
12. to make, to create, to open up (e.g., a path)

Conjugation

This verb is conjugated like couvrir and offrir. It is conjugated like a regular -er verb in the present and imperfect indicative, present subjunctive, imperative, and present participle; it is conjugated like a regular -ir verb in the infinitive, future indicative, conditional, past historic, and imperfect subjunctive; and its past participle ouvert is irregular.

Conjugation of ouvrir (see also Appendix:French verbs)

infinitive	simple	ouvrir
	compound	avoir + past participle
present participle or gerund1	simple	ouvrant /u.vʁɑ̃/
	compound	ayant + past participle
past participle		ouvert /u.vɛʁ/
		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		je (j’)	tu	il, elle, on	nous	vous	ils, elles
(simple tenses)	present	ouvre /uvʁ/	ouvres /uvʁ/	ouvre /uvʁ/	ouvrons /u.vʁɔ̃/	ouvrez /u.vʁe/	ouvrent /uvʁ/
	imperfect	ouvrais /u.vʁɛ/	ouvrais /u.vʁɛ/	ouvrait /u.vʁɛ/	ouvrions /u.vʁi.jɔ̃/	ouvriez /u.vʁi.je/	ouvraient /u.vʁɛ/
	past historic2	ouvris /u.vʁi/	ouvris /u.vʁi/	ouvrit /u.vʁi/	ouvrîmes /u.vʁim/	ouvrîtes /u.vʁit/	ouvrirent /u.vʁiʁ/
	future	ouvrirai /u.vʁi.ʁe/	ouvriras /u.vʁi.ʁa/	ouvrira /u.vʁi.ʁa/	ouvrirons /u.vʁi.ʁɔ̃/	ouvrirez /u.vʁi.ʁe/	ouvriront /u.vʁi.ʁɔ̃/
	conditional	ouvrirais /u.vʁi.ʁɛ/	ouvrirais /u.vʁi.ʁɛ/	ouvrirait /u.vʁi.ʁɛ/	ouvririons /u.vʁi.ʁjɔ̃/	ouvririez /u.vʁi.ʁje/	ouvriraient /u.vʁi.ʁɛ/
(compound tenses)	present perfect	present indicative of avoir + past participle
	pluperfect	imperfect indicative of avoir + past participle
	past anterior2	past historic of avoir + past participle
	future perfect	future of avoir + past participle
	conditional perfect	conditional of avoir + past participle
subjunctive		que je (j’)	que tu	qu’il, qu’elle	que nous	que vous	qu’ils, qu’elles
(simple tenses)	present	ouvre /uvʁ/	ouvres /uvʁ/	ouvre /uvʁ/	ouvrions /u.vʁi.jɔ̃/	ouvriez /u.vʁi.je/	ouvrent /uvʁ/
	imperfect2	ouvrisse /u.vʁis/	ouvrisses /u.vʁis/	ouvrît /u.vʁi/	ouvrissions /u.vʁi.sjɔ̃/	ouvrissiez /u.vʁi.sje/	ouvrissent /u.vʁis/
(compound tenses)	past	present subjunctive of avoir + past participle
	pluperfect2	imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle
imperative		–	tu	–	nous	vous	–
simple		—	ouvre /uvʁ/	—	ouvrons /u.vʁɔ̃/	ouvrez /u.vʁe/	—
compound		—	simple imperative of avoir + past participle	—	simple imperative of avoir + past participle	simple imperative of avoir + past participle	—
1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en.
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way: past historic → present perfect past anterior → pluperfect imperfect subjunctive → present subjunctive pluperfect subjunctive → past subjunctive (Christopher Kendris [1995], Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81).

This verb is conjugated like couvrir and offrir. It is conjugated like a regular -er verb in the present and imperfect indicative, present subjunctive, imperative, and present participle; it is conjugated like a regular -ir verb in the infinitive, future indicative, conditional, past historic, and imperfect subjunctive; and its past participle ouvert is irregular.

Conjugation of s'ouvrir (see also Appendix:French verbs)

infinitive	simple	s'ouvrir
	compound	s'être + past participle
present participle or gerund1	simple	s’ouvrant /su.vʁɑ̃/
	compound	ayant or étant + past participle
past participle		ouvert /u.vɛʁ/
		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		je (j’)	tu	il, elle, on	nous	vous	ils, elles
(simple tenses)	present	m’ouvre /muvʁ/	t’ouvres /tuvʁ/	s’ouvre /suvʁ/	nous ouvrons /nu.z‿u.vʁɔ̃/	vous ouvrez /vu.z‿u.vʁe/	s’ouvrent /suvʁ/
	imperfect	m’ouvrais /mu.vʁɛ/	t’ouvrais /tu.vʁɛ/	s’ouvrait /su.vʁɛ/	nous ouvrions /nu.z‿u.vʁi.jɔ̃/	vous ouvriez /vu.z‿u.vʁi.je/	s’ouvraient /su.vʁɛ/
	past historic2	m’ouvris /mu.vʁi/	t’ouvris /tu.vʁi/	s’ouvrit /su.vʁi/	nous ouvrîmes /nu.z‿u.vʁim/	vous ouvrîtes /vu.z‿u.vʁit/	s’ouvrirent /su.vʁiʁ/
	future	m’ouvrirai /mu.vʁi.ʁe/	t’ouvriras /tu.vʁi.ʁa/	s’ouvrira /su.vʁi.ʁa/	nous ouvrirons /nu.z‿u.vʁi.ʁɔ̃/	vous ouvrirez /vu.z‿u.vʁi.ʁe/	s’ouvriront /su.vʁi.ʁɔ̃/
	conditional	m’ouvrirais /mu.vʁi.ʁɛ/	t’ouvrirais /tu.vʁi.ʁɛ/	s’ouvrirait /su.vʁi.ʁɛ/	nous ouvririons /nu.z‿u.vʁi.ʁjɔ̃/	vous ouvririez /vu.z‿u.vʁi.ʁje/	s’ouvriraient /su.vʁi.ʁɛ/
(compound tenses)	present perfect	present indicative of s'être + past participle
	pluperfect	imperfect indicative of s'être + past participle
	past anterior2	past historic of s'être + past participle
	future perfect	future of s'être + past participle
	conditional perfect	conditional of s'être + past participle
subjunctive		que je (j’)	que tu	qu’il, qu’elle	que nous	que vous	qu’ils, qu’elles
(simple tenses)	present	m’ouvre /muvʁ/	t’ouvres /tuvʁ/	s’ouvre /suvʁ/	nous ouvrions /nu.z‿u.vʁi.jɔ̃/	vous ouvriez /vu.z‿u.vʁi.je/	s’ouvrent /suvʁ/
	imperfect2	m’ouvrisse /mu.vʁis/	t’ouvrisses /tu.vʁis/	s’ouvrît /su.vʁi/	nous ouvrissions /nu.z‿u.vʁi.sjɔ̃/	vous ouvrissiez /vu.z‿u.vʁi.sje/	s’ouvrissent /su.vʁis/
(compound tenses)	past	present subjunctive of s'être + past participle
	pluperfect2	imperfect subjunctive of s'être + past participle
imperative		–	tu	–	nous	vous	–
simple		—	ouvre-toi /uvʁ.twa/	—	ouvrons-nous /u.vʁɔ̃.nu/	ouvrez-vous /u.vʁe.vu/	—
compound		—	simple imperative of s'être + past participle	—	simple imperative of s'être + past participle	simple imperative of s'être + past participle	—
1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en.
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way: past historic → present perfect past anterior → pluperfect imperfect subjunctive → present subjunctive pluperfect subjunctive → past subjunctive (Christopher Kendris [1995], Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81).

Antonyms

• fermer

Derived terms

• ouvrant
• ouvre-boîte
• ouvre-bouteille
• ouvreur
• ouvrir grand
• ouvrir la boîte de Pandore
• ouvrir la marche
• ouvrir la marque
• ouvrir la porte
• ouvrir la voie
• ouvrir le bal
• ouvrir le feu
• ouvrir les vannes
• ouvrir les yeux
• Sésame, ouvre-toi
• toit ouvrant

 

Related terms

• ouvert
• ouverture

Further reading

• “ouvrir”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Middle French

Etymology

From Old French ovrir.

Verb

ouvrir

1. to open

Descendants

• French: ouvrir