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SPANISH VERB

abrir la boca

to open one's mouth, to speak up

  • Irregular -ir verb
  • Gerund: abriendo la boca
  • Past participle: abierto la boca

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. yo I open one's mouth
  2. tú you open one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella he/she opens one's mouth
  4. nosotros we open one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain you all open one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they open one's mouth

Past

Pretérito indefinido · finished actions

  1. yo I opened one's mouth
  2. tú you opened one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella he/she opened one's mouth
  4. nosotros we opened one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain you all opened one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they opened one's mouth

Imperfect

Pretérito imperfecto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. yo I used to open one's mouth
  2. tú you used to open one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella he/she used to open one's mouth
  4. nosotros we used to open one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain you all used to open one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they used to open one's mouth

Future

Futuro · plans and promises; in speech, “voy a hablar” is just as common

  1. yo I will open one's mouth
  2. tú you will open one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella he/she will open one's mouth
  4. nosotros we will open one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain you all will open one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they will open one's mouth

Conditional

Condicional · “would”

  1. yo I would open one's mouth
  2. tú you would open one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella he/she would open one's mouth
  4. nosotros we would open one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain you all would open one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas they would open one's mouth

Present subjunctive

Presente de subjuntivo · wishes, doubts, “que …”

  1. yo (that) I open one's mouth
  2. tú (that) you open one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella (that) he/she open one's mouth
  4. nosotros (that) we open one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain (that) you all open one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (that) they open one's mouth

Past subjunctive

Imperfecto de subjuntivo · “if I were”, “si …”

  1. yo (if) I opened one's mouth
  2. tú (if) you opened one's mouth
  3. usted, él, ella (if) he/she opened one's mouth
  4. nosotros (if) we opened one's mouth
  5. vosotros Spain (if) you all opened one's mouth
  6. ustedes, ellos, ellas (if) they opened one's mouth

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders; a negative one uses the subjunctive (no hables)

  1. tú open one's mouth!
  2. usted open one's mouth! (formal)
  3. nosotros open one's mouth! (let’s)
  4. vosotros Spain open one's mouth! (all of you)
  5. ustedes open one's mouth! (all of you)

How to use abrir la boca

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    En las reuniones nunca abro la boca.

    In meetings I never open my mouth.

  2. Past

    Abrió la boca y lo estropeó todo.

    He opened his mouth and ruined everything.

  3. Imperfect

    Mi abuelo no abría la boca en toda la comida.

    My grandfather didn't open his mouth all through lunch.

  4. Future

    Cuando vea a Paco, Julián abrirá la boca, seguro.

    When he sees Paco, Julián will open his mouth, for sure.

  5. Conditional

    Yo no abriría la boca hasta hablar con un abogado.

    I wouldn't open my mouth until I'd spoken to a lawyer.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Es mejor que no abras la boca delante de tu suegra.

    It's better you don't open your mouth in front of your mother-in-law.

  7. Past subjunctive

    Le hice señas para que no abriera la boca.

    I signalled to him not to open his mouth.

  8. Imperative

    Abre la boca y di lo que piensas de una vez.

    Open your mouth and say what you think, once and for all.

Good to know

  • "No abrir la boca" is to say nothing at all: estuvo dos horas sin abrir la boca. The dentist also says "abre la boca".

Where you hear abrir la boca

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Spanish · Fluency Level 3

  • Julián no abre la boca ni para pedir una cerveza. Julian doesn't open his mouth even to ask for a beer.
  • En toda la noche no abrió la boca. Ni una vez. He didn't open his mouth all night. Not once.
  • Cuando vea a Paco, Julián va a abrir la boca. Seguro. When he sees Paco, Julian is going to open his mouth. For sure.
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A Wish of Your Own

Fluency Level 3 · No ha abierto la boca.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -ir verb.