פָּתַח (b. h.) 1) to open, begin. Y. Ber. VI, end, 10ᵈ על כל … שהיה פוֹתֵהַ וכ׳ over each cask as he opened it he said the benediction &c. Sabb. 104ᵃ, a. e. פּוֹתְחִין לו (Var. פְּתָחִין), v. טָמֵא I. Ib. 48ᵃ מתירין … אבל לא פותחין you may untie the neck-hole of a shirt, but not cut it open (on the Sabbath). Y. Taan. I, 64ᵇ top (ref. to Is. XLV, 8) כנקבה … פוֹתַחַת וכ׳ like the female that opens for the male. Ned. III, 4 לא יִפְתַּח לו בנדר he must not begin (offer his willingness) to make a vow (in order to escape robbery &c., v. נָדַר); a. v. fr.—Part. pass. פָּתוּחַ; פְּתוּחָה; pl. פְּתוּחִים, פְּתוּחִין; פְּתוּחוֹת. Yeb. 71ᵇ, a. e. נסתם הפ׳, v. סָתַם. Snh. 94ᵃ, v. סָתַם (v. מנצפ"ך). Meg. 3ᵃ, פ׳ באמצע, v. סָתַם. Erub. IV, 6 שלש חצירות הפ׳ זו לזו ופ׳ וכ׳ three courts opening into (communicating with) one another and into the publicroad; a. v. fr.—פתח פתוח, v. פֶּתַח.—Esp. (פרשה) פְּתוּחָה a paragraph in the Torah beginning with a new, indented line, opp. סתומה. Treat. Sof’rim I, 14 איזהו פ׳ כל שלא וכ׳ what is an open paragraph? Such as does not begin at the beginning of a line, וכמה … ותהא נקראת פ׳ and how much space must one leave … for a paragraph to be called open?; a. fr.—Trnsf. [to open the door to,] to introduce (into learning). Y. M. Kat. III, 83ᵇ top איזהו רבו כל שפ׳ לו תחלה who is called one’s (special) teacher? He who was the first to initiate him; a. e.—Esp. to open an opportunity for retracting a vow, to suggest reasons which, if known at the time, would have prevented the person from making the vow, v. חֲרָטָה. Ned. IX, 1 פותחין לאדם בכבוך וכ׳ the judges offer suggestions taken from the respect due to parents (saying, if you had known that this vow cast a reflection on your father &c.). Ib. רִפְתְּחוּ לו בכבוד המקום why not suggest to him the reverence due to the Lord (‘if you had known that he who makes a vow is considered an evil-doer &c.’)? Ib. 4 פותחין לו מן הכתוב וכ׳ we offer suggestions to him from what is written in the Law, saying to him, if you had known that (in fulfilling that vow) you would transgress the law forbidding revenge &c.; a. fr.—B. Kam. 27ᵃ פ׳ בכד וסיים בחבית the Mishnah begins with kad and closes with ḥabith! Ber. 10ᵃ פ׳ בה באשרי וכ׳, v. סוּם I h. Gen. R. s. 84 אתה פָתַחְתָּ תחלה בהצלת וכ׳ thou wast the first man to speak of saving life; אתה פתחת בתשובה וכ׳ thou wast the first to do repentance, … one of thy descendants shall rise and be the first (prophet) to call for repentance; a. fr.—Esp. to open a lecture with a (Biblical) text. Pesik. Aḥăré, p. 170ᵃ ר׳ לוי פ׳ וכ׳ R. Levi took up the text (Ps. LXXV, 5) &c. Gen. R. s. 1; a. v. fr.—Pesik. R. s. 33 [an editorial gloss] פ׳ בכל אלו הפרשיות the author takes his texts from all those (quoted) passages. —2) to explain, speak plainly. Shek. V, 1; Men. 65ᵃ (ref. to פתחיה as identical with מרדכי) he was named Pethahia, שהיה פותח דברים ודורשן וכ׳ (not בדברים) because he explained words and interpreted them (etymologically) and knew seventy languages.—Part. pass. as ab. Sifré Aḥăré, beg., v. סָתַם.
    Nif. - נִפְתַּח 1) to be opened. Yeb. 71ᵇ, a. e., v. סָתַם. R. Hash. 16ᵇ שלשה … נִפְתָּחִין בר"ה three books are opened (for recording) on the New Year’s Day. B. Bath. 125ᵇ, v. סוּם I, Nithpa. Pesik. R. l. c. להִיפָּתֵחַ to have one’s bowels opened, v. פְּסִיעָה; a. fr.—Ib. [editorial gloss] ונ׳ עוד שם בפרשת וכ׳ and furthermore this section (Is. LXI, 1) was used as the opening text; a. fr.—Esp. to have one’s eyes opened, to become seeing. Pesik. R. s. 42 כשילדה שדה כל סומא … נ׳ when Sarah gave birth, every blind person in the world was restored to sight; a. e.
    Pi. - פִּיתֵּחַ 1) to open. Ib. פי׳ הפילקיות he opened the prisons. Par. III, 8 ועושין … ומְפַתְּחִין בה חלונות they piled wood in the shape of a tower and opened windows in it. Zeb. 88ᵇ רימונים שלא פִיתְּחוּ פיהן (Ms. K. a. R. 2 נִפְתְּחוּ; Ms. R. 1 נִתְפַּתְּחוּ, v. Rabb. D. S. a. l. note 5) pomegranates which have not yet burst open; a. e. —2) to engrave. Y. Ab. Zar. III, 43ᵇ bot פי׳ בה פיתוחים if he cut designs into it. —3) to dig, break ground. Pirké d’R. El. ch. XXVIII; Gen. R. s. 76 כשיצמד … יְפַתְּחוּ וישדדו וכ׳ when an ox and a cow are harnessed together, they will break and harrow all valleys.
    Hithpa. - הִתְפַּתֵּחַ,
    Nithpa. - נִתְפַּתֵּחַ 1) to be opened, v. supra. Pesik. R. s. 31 נִתְפַּתְּחוּ בדם they (their cavities) were opened with (discharged) blood; a. e. —2) to be cut into, graven. Tosef. Sot. XV, 1; Y. ib. IX, 24ᵇ וכיון … היו מִתְפַּתְּחוֹת לפניו וכ׳ and when they let it (the Shamir, v. שָׁמִיר) look at the stones, they were engraven before it like the (wax-covered) tablets &c.—[Y. Kil. VII, beg. 30ᵈ מתפתחת R. S. to Kil. VIII, 1, v. פִּתְפֵּת.]