To load a file, you'll need to import IfcOpenShell and store the IFC file in a variable. We'll use the variable ifc.

import ifcopenshell
ifc = ifcopenshell.open('/path/to/your/file.ifc')

Samples from web

Subject	Language	Version	Additional infos
Understanding placements in IFC using IfcOpenShell and FreeCAD	python	0.6.0a1	FreeCAD 0.18 git
Using IfcOpenShell to parse IFC files with Python	python
Read geometry as Boundary Representation in FreeCAD	python	0.6.0a1	FreeCAD 0.18 git
Read IFC geometry as triangle meshes in FreeCAD	python	0.6.0a1	FreeCAD 0.18 git
Using IfcOpenShell and C++ to generate Alignments through the IFC 4×1 schema	python/C++
Creating a simple wall with property set and quantity information	python
Using IfcOpenshell and pythonOCC to generate cross sections directly from an IFC file	python	<= 0.6 ?	pythonOCC 0.16.0 ?
Using the parsing functionality of IfcOpenShell interactively	python
Using IfcOpenShell and pythonOCC to construct new geometry	python	<= 0.6	pythonOCC 0.16.0
Various ifc creation examples (little house, geometry etc…)	C++

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