open door

American  

noun

1. the policy of admitting people of all nationalities or ethnic groups to a country upon equal terms, as for immigration.

2. the policy or practice of trading with all nations on an equal basis.

3. admission or access; unrestricted opportunity.

   His experience had given him an open door to success in his field.

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open door British  

noun

1. a policy or practice by which a nation grants opportunities for trade to all other nations equally

2. free and unrestricted admission

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adjective

1. open to all; accessible

2. (in industrial relations) designating a policy of management being prepared to talk to workers in the office at any time

Other Word Forms

• open-door
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of open door

First recorded in 1520–30

Example Sentences

Oglethorpe, James, 3 Ohio, admission, 225 Oklahoma, admission, 443 Open door policy, 500 Oregon, 284f.

From History of the United States by Beard, Charles A. (Charles Austin)

Sub-topic 1.—Importance historically: Open mouth to Europe; Open door to continent; Cartier, Champlain.

From Ontario Normal School Manuals: Science of Education by Ontario. Ministry of Education

Jane clapped her hand over her mouth and jumped up and down, offering a fantastic silhouette against the light of the Open door.

From Seventeen A Tale of Youth and Summer Time and the Baxter Family Especially William by Tarkington, Booth

A gust of wind blew open the door, and Amrei cried: "Open, door!"

From The German Classics of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, Volume 08 Masterpieces of German Literature Translated into English. in Twenty Volumes by Various

Open door, America's policy of the, relative to China, 213; what America should mean by, 215; problem of, the essential one in solution of question of colonies, 267-268.

From American World Policies by Weyl, Walter E.