obra

See also: Obra, óbra, òbra, obrá, obrà, and Obrą

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˈɔ.βɾə]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ˈɔ.bɾə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈɔ.bɾa]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Old Catalan obra, inherited from Latin opera, derived from the plural of opus. Doublet of òpera.

Noun

obra f (plural obres)

1. work (effort expended on a task)
2. work (literary or artistic production)
3. play (theatrical performance)
4. (often in the plural) construction, repairs (of a building)

Derived terms

• obra pública

Related terms

• obrar
• òpera

References

• “obra”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “obra”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “obra” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “obra” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Etymology 2

Verb

obra

1. inflection of obrar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈobra]
• Hyphenation: ob‧ra

Noun

obra

1. genitive/accusative singular of obr

Anagrams

• orba
• roba

Galician

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese obra, from Latin opera, from opus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɔβɾɐ]

Noun

obra f (plural obras)

1. work, labor, the action of toiling or working
2. a product of work, such as a work of art

   Synonym: creación

3. oeuvre; the complete body of an artist's work
4. a building under construction; construction site
5. any human action, innovation, or achievement

Derived terms

• obra pública

Related terms

• obrar
• obradoiro
• obreiro

Verb

obra

1. inflection of obrar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

References

• Seoane, Ernesto Xosé González; Granja, María Álvarez de la; Agrelo, Ana Isabel Boullón (2006–2022), “obra”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval [Dictionary of dictionaries of Medieval Galician] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Barreiro, Xavier Varela; Guinovart, Xavier Gómez (2006–2018), “obra”, in Corpus Xelmírez: corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval [Corpus Xelmírez: linguistic corpus of Medieval Galicia] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “obra”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “obra”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “obra”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈoːb.rɑ/

Noun

ōbra

1. genitive plural of ōbr

Papiamentu

Etymology

From Portuguese obra and Spanish obra and Kabuverdianu óbra.

Noun

obra

1. work
2. construction

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.bɾɐ/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.bɾɐ/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.bɾa/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.bɾɐ/ [ˈɔ.βɾɐ]

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: o‧bra

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese obra, from Latin opera.Doublet of ópera.

Noun

obra f (plural obras)

1. construction (process of constructing, building)
2. construction site (place where a building is under construction)
3. work (literary, artistic, or intellectual production)

   Synonym: trabalho

Derived terms

• obra de

Related terms

• obrar
• obreiro
• ópera

Etymology 2

Verb

obra

1. inflection of obrar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Further reading

• “obra”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “obra”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈobɾa/ [ˈo.β̞ɾa]
• Rhymes: -obɾa
• Syllabification: o‧bra

Etymology 1

From Old Spanish obra, inherited from Latin opera, from opus. The original form in Old Spanish was huebra, which was later influenced by the verb obrar and generalized to obra. Doublet of ópera.

Noun

obra f (plural obras)

1. work (usually literary or artistic)

   obra de arte ― work of art

   obra literaria ― literary work

   • 1915, Julio Vicuña Cifuentes, Mitos y Supersticiones Recogidos de la Tradición Oral Chilena, page 258:

     El murciélago es obra del Diablo, el cual lo hizo en competencia con Dios, cuando éste formó la golondrina.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. (also in the plural) construction

   Synonyms: construcción, edificación

   carretera en obras ― road under construction

   Hay obras.

   There's construction going on.

Derived terms

• buena obra
• contrato de obra
• de obra
• en las obras (“in the works”)
• en obras
• es obra
• gran obra
• maestro de obras
• mano de obra
• manos a la obra
• obra cinematográfica
• obra de
• obra de arte
• obra de caridad
• obra huérfana
• obra maestra
• obra muerta
• obra pía
• obra pública
• obra social
• por obra de
• por obra y gracia de

Related terms

• huebra
• maniobra
• obrador
• obrar
• obrero m
• ópera

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

obra

1. inflection of obrar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

See also

• trabajo

Further reading

• “obra”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Anagrams

• abro
• rabo
• roba

Swedish

Etymology

From o- (“un-”) +‎ bra (“good”).

Adjective

obra (comparative mer obra, superlative mest obra)

1. (colloquial, nonstandard) ungood, not good
   • 2019, Staffan Dopping, “Nämen, så dåligt! [Oh, how terrible!]”, in Språktidningen, number 2, Stockholm: Vetenskapsmedia, →ISSN, page 76:

     Tyvärr har Svenska akademiens ordlista, SAOL, i de senaste upplagorna sorterat ut denna böjning av dålig. Det var obra, tycker jag.

     Unfortunately, the latest editions of Svenska akademiens ordlista, SAOL, have sorted out this inflection of dålig. That is ungood, in my opinion.

Declension

Invariable, compared periphrastically.

Adverb

obra (comparative mer obra, superlative mest obra)

1. (colloquial, nonstandard) poorly, not well
   • 2008 October 29, “Umeå: Volvo varslar ytterligare 150”, in SVT Nyheter Västerbotten‎^[2], retrieved 9 April 2022:

     Det gick obra. Vi har en förhandlingsmotpart som bara säger att det inte finns pengar, säger Frank.

     It went poorly. We have a negotiating counterparty who just says there is no money, Frank says.

See also

• dålig (adjective)
• dåligt (adverb)

Tagalog

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Spanish obra. Doublet of ubra.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈʔobɾa/ [ˈʔoː.bɾɐ]
• Rhymes: -obɾa
• Syllabification: o‧bra

Noun

obra (Baybayin spelling ᜂᜊ᜔ᜇ)

1. literary work

   Synonyms: katha, akda

2. something made or done

   Synonyms: gawa, lika, yari, trabaho

3. work; employment

   Synonyms: trabaho, empleo, gawa, tungkulin

Alternative forms

• ubra — rare

Derived terms

• obra de-mano
• obra maestra
• obras piyas
• obras publikas

Related terms

• obrerismo
• obrerista
• obrero
• ubra

Noun

obra (Baybayin spelling ᜂᜊ᜔ᜇ)

1. alternative form of ubra (“bowel discharge after taking a laxative, purgative or enema”)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Spanish obrar (“to work, to function”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔobˈɾa/ [ʔobˈɾa]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: ob‧ra

Adjective

obrá (Baybayin spelling ᜂᜊ᜔ᜇ)

1. alternative form of ubra

Anagrams

• baro