開ける
あける
hepburn akeru
to open (transitive)
Part of speech · ichidan-verb
Pattern visualization
Examples
- 窓を開けてください。Please open the window.
- 新しい店が開きました。A new shop has opened.
Collocations
開ける (akeru, open — transitive)開く (aku, open — intransitive)開ける時間 (akeru jikan, opening time)夜が明ける (yo ga akeru, day breaks — kanji 明)開店 (kaiten, store opening)
Mnemonic
開ける akeru — transitive "to open". Intransitive pair 開く (aku, to be opened). Applies to doors, windows, lids, shops, accounts. Kanji trap: 開ける (open) vs 明ける (to brighten, as in 夜が明ける "dawn breaks") vs 空ける (to empty) — same pronunciation akeru, three different kanji, three different verbs. Context and kanji disambiguate. A textbook case of Japanese homophonic richness.
Quick check
Reading difference between 夜が明ける and 窓を開ける?