Etymology Explorer › French

Where does “ouvrir” come from?

ouvrir (French) comes from Middle French ouvrir, from Old French ovrir, from Vulgar Latin operire, from Latin aperīre, from Latin aperiō, from Proto-Indo-European h₂epó — off, away.

ouvrir (French): to open; to begin

Definitions

  1. to open; to begin

Ancestry of “ouvrir”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchouvrirto open
2Old Frenchovrirto open
3Vulgar Latinoperire—
4Latinaperīre—
5Latinaperiō—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂epóoff, away

Words derived from “ouvrir”

  • ouvert
  • entrouvrir
  • réouvrir
  • ouvreur
  • ouvert
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂epó →