open up
Britishverb
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(intr) to start firing a gun or guns
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(intr) to speak freely or without restraint
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informal (intr) (of a motor vehicle) to accelerate
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(tr) to render accessible
the motorway opened up the remoter areas
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to make or become more exciting or lively
the game opened up after half-time
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Spread out, unfold, as in A green valley opened up before us . [Early 1800s]
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Begin operation, as in The new store opens up next month . [Late 1700s]
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Begin firing, begin attacking, as in The artillery opened up at dawn , or, figuratively, The speaker opened up fiercely on the opposition . [1930s] Also see open fire .
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Speak freely and candidly, as in At last the witness opened up and told what happened . “ Colloquial ; c. 1920]
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Make an opening by cutting, as in The surgeon opened up the patient's chest .
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Become available or accessible, as in With new markets opening up all the time we hope to see our revenues increase dramatically . [Mid-1800s]
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Increase the speed of a vehicle, as in Let's see how fast the car will go if you open it up . [ Colloquial ; c. 1920]
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Open the door, let me (or us) in, as in Open up! This is the police . [Mid-1900s] Note that in all of these usages except def. 4 and 7, up serves as an intensifier, that is, it emphasizes the verb open .
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Or offer to open up Fifa's cash reserves?
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Baseball has a bleak history of wealthy owners unwilling to open up their wallets when it matters most—why howl about a team that unabashedly does?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
And on Wednesday, Havana said it would open up major sectors such as gas stations, electricity generation, trash collection and pharmacies to private firms.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
Yet Warsh’s unwillingness to open up about his views disappointed investors, and sparked questions about whether he would take the necessary action to back up his tough talk on inflation.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
“Yes, but how else are we going to open up and maintain all these extra rooms? We’ll need the space, we can’t go stacking family up three to a room like a tenement.”
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
