ESEN
Which one to use?Beginnerverboverbo frasal
OpenvsTurn on
"Open" is for doors, windows, and files; "turn on" is for electricity, lights, and electronic devices.
Side-by-side comparison
Open
verboTo make something go from closed to open, doors, windows, books, boxes, files, businesses.
Can you open the window? It is hot in here.
The supermarket opens at 8am and closes at 10pm.
Open your textbooks to page 45, please.
Turn on
verbo frasalTo activate an electrical or electronic device. Switch on a light, TV, or air conditioner.
Can you turn on the light? I cannot see anything.
Turn on the TV, the game is starting in five minutes.
She turned on her laptop and started working immediately.
Common mistake
- •"Open the light" is a classic Spanish-speaker error: in English lights are turned on and off, never opened or closed.
- •Only doors, windows, and containers are "opened." Same error with electronics: "open the TV" → "turn on the TV."
Trick to remember it
Does it have a switch, power button, or electrical plug? "Turn on/off." Does it have a hinge, latch, or lid? "Open/close." If you plug something in, you turn it on; if you lift a lid, you open it.
Quick rule
- •"Open" = open (doors, windows, books, businesses).
- •"Turn on" = switch on (lights, TV, electrical devices).
Did you know?
The "open the light" confusion is not exclusive to Spanish. In Hebrew, in dialectal German, in Arabic, and in many other languages the equivalent of "open" is used to turn on lights. It turns out that English is quite particular in using TURN (to rotate) to switch on lights, probably because early domestic electric switches were rotating knobs. The same action is also called SWITCH ON in British English, which is more descriptive of the mechanical action of a switch. TURN ON additionally carries broader informal connotations in colloquial American English.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
Can you _____ the TV? I want to watch the news.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
Could you _____ the window? It's really hot in here.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Related word pairs
CheckvsControl
"Check" is to verify or examine; "control" is to have power over something, not merely inspect it.
ClosevsShut
"Close" is to shut gently; "shut" suggests firmness, force, or that something is sealed completely.
LetvsAllow
"Let" is to permit casually or personally; "allow" is to permit formally or with authority.
AbovevsOver
"Above" is at a higher level without contact; "over" implies covering, movement, or crossing.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy