fermer

Inherited from Old French fermer (“to close”), Latin firmāre (“make firm, confirm”).

• IPA^(key): /fɛʁ.me/

• Audio:

  (file)

fermer

1. (transitive) to shut
2. (transitive) to close
3. (reflexive) to close
4. to do up (of clothing)
5. to switch off, to turn off (of a device or an appliance)
6. to shut down, to discontinue, to axe (of a service)
7. to bind off (of stitches in knitting)
8. (intransitive) to harden (of someone's face)
9. (transitive) to put someone off something, to turn someone off something

   Ce professeur l'a fermé au sujet des mathématiques.

   That teacher turned him off maths.

10. (transitive) to mark the border of

    Les Vosges ferment l'Alsace à l'ouest.

    The Vosges mountains mark the western border of the Alsace.

• ouvrir

• fermeture

• “fermer”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

From Latin firmāre (“to make firm, to confirm”).

fermer

1. to close

This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. The forms that would normally end in *-rms, *-rmt are modified to rs, rt. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

• French: fermer

From Middle English fermour; compare English farmer.

fermer (plural fermers)

1. farmer