Otwórz usta, proszę.

Otwórz is the imperative form of the verb otworzyć, which means to open.

In this sentence, otwórz means open! and is directed to one person in an informal way.

So:

• otworzyć = to open
• otwórz! = open!

Polish imperatives are often used very directly, especially in instructions, medical contexts, or everyday commands.

Both can be translated as open, but they are not the same.

• otwórz comes from otworzyć, a perfective verb
• otwieraj comes from otwierać, an imperfective verb

Here, otwórz is used because the speaker wants one complete action: Open your mouth.

Very roughly:

• otwórz = open it now / do it fully
• otwieraj = be opening / open repeatedly / start opening

In a sentence like this, especially from a doctor or dentist, otwórz usta is the natural choice.

Because usta is the normal Polish word for mouth, but grammatically it looks like a plural form.

This is one of those words that do not match English neatly:

• usta = mouth
• literally it looks plural, but in normal usage it refers to a single mouth

Polish often treats usta as a plural-only noun in everyday language. So even when talking about one person’s mouth, you usually say usta, not a singular form.

That is why:

• Otwórz usta = Open your mouth

There is a singular form, usta’s historical singular is usta? No—the actual singular form is usta not singular; the singular form usto exists only in very limited, old-fashioned, poetic, or technical contexts and is not what learners should normally use.

In modern everyday Polish, you should learn:

• usta = mouth / lips area, used as the standard word

So for practical purposes, just use usta.

In Polish, possessive words like my, your, his, and her are often left out when they are obvious from context.

If someone says Otwórz usta, it is naturally understood as:

• Open your mouth

Polish does not need to say your here, because the command is clearly directed at the person being spoken to.

You could say Otwórz swoje usta, but that sounds unnatural in this situation. The shorter version is much more normal.

Usta is in the accusative case because it is the direct object of the verb otwórz.

The action is being done to the mouth:

• open what?
• usta

For this noun, the accusative form looks the same as the nominative form:

• nominative: usta
• accusative: usta

So the form does not change here, even though the case does.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation guide would be:

ot-voosh OO-sta PRO-sheh

A few helpful details:

• tw in otwórz is pronounced close to tv
• ó sounds like oo
• rz here sounds like zh/sh depending on context; in otwórz it is commonly heard like sh at the end
• u sounds like oo
• sz in proszę sounds like sh
• ę at the end of proszę is often pronounced approximately like eh in normal speech

A more careful approximation:

• Otwórz ≈ ot-voosh
• usta ≈ OO-sta
• proszę ≈ PRO-sheh

Here, proszę means please.

It is a very common Polish word with several uses, including:

• please
• here you are
• go ahead
• I’m asking / kindly do...

In this sentence:

• Otwórz usta, proszę. = Open your mouth, please.

It makes the command more polite.

It is fairly flexible.

You can hear:

• Otwórz usta, proszę.
• Proszę, otwórz usta.

Both are correct.

The version with proszę at the end can sound like:

• command first, then politeness marker

The version with proszę at the beginning can sound slightly softer or more explicitly polite.

In many real-life situations, both are natural.

By itself, it is usually not rude. It is a normal polite instruction, especially in contexts like:

• a doctor speaking to a patient
• a dentist speaking to a patient
• a parent speaking gently to a child
• someone giving clear practical instructions

However, otwórz is still the informal singular imperative, so whether it feels appropriate depends on who is speaking to whom.

With proszę, it sounds polite enough in many situations, but it is not the most formal possible version.

To more than one person, use the plural imperative:

• Otwórzcie usta, proszę. = Open your mouths, please.

Here:

• otwórz = open! (to one person)
• otwórzcie = open! (to several people)

Notice that usta stays the same.

In formal Polish, you usually do not use otwórz with a stranger, patient, customer, or older person unless the situation is naturally informal.

A more formal version is:

• Proszę otworzyć usta. = Please open your mouth.

Another very formal/polite pattern is:

• Niech pan otworzy usta. = said to a man
• Niech pani otworzy usta. = said to a woman

These are especially common in polite service or medical situations.

Because in commands, Polish often puts the imperative verb first.

So:

• Otwórz usta is the most natural basic order

That mirrors the structure of English commands:

• Open your mouth

Polish word order is fairly flexible, but with imperatives, starting with the verb is the normal choice.

Yes. Buzię comes from buzia, a more affectionate or child-friendly word meaning something like mouth or little mouth.

So:

• Otwórz usta = neutral
• Otwórz buzię = gentler, often used with children

For example, a parent feeding a child might say:

• Otwórz buzię, proszę.

But in a neutral adult context, usta is usually the safer choice.

The dictionary forms are:

• otwórz → otworzyć = to open
• usta → usta = mouth
• proszę → prosić = to ask / request

A small note: even though proszę comes from prosić, learners should often treat proszę as a very common fixed word meaning please in many everyday situations.