open file

English

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

The rook on the e-file (marked with crosses) is on an open file since there are no pawns on it. The rook can move to any square on the file, uninhibited by pawns.

Noun

open file (plural open files)

1. (chess) A file with no pawns of either color on it.

Hypernyms

• file

Coordinate terms

• half-open file
• closed file

Translations

file with no pawns

• German: offene Linie f

Further reading

• open file on Wikipedia.Wikipedia