abría

Abría is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb abrir, meaning to open. As a single form it can represent either first-person singular (yo abría) or third-person singular (él/ella/usted abría). The subject is determined by context, since the form alone does not specify who is performing the action. The accent on í marks the stressed syllable and helps distinguish this form from other conjugations that use the same base letters.

Abrir comes from Latin aperire; in modern Spanish abría is used to describe actions in the past that were ongoing, habitual, or that set the scene in narration. It conveys a sense of continuity or repetition rather than a completed past action.

Examples show typical usage. “Cuando era niño, abría la ventana cada mañana” describes a habitual past action. “Ella abría la puerta cuando sonó el teléfono” conveys an ongoing past action happening at that moment. “Yo abría la caja con cuidado” likewise indicates a past, ongoing or repeated act of opening. In all cases, abría expresses imperfect aspect rather than completed action, and it often appears in narrative or descriptive passages to provide background information.