Showing results for "opening"

• present participle of open.

opening

American  

[oh-puh-ning] / ˈoʊ pə nɪŋ /

noun

• openings
  plural

1. an act or instance of making or becoming open.

   The opening of the tomb gathered much publicity.

   Antonyms:

   closing

2. the act of a person or thing that opens.

   Her opening of the ceremony was brilliantly handled.

3. an unobstructed or unoccupied space or place.

   That narrow opening between buildings is a good place to shelter from the rain.

4. a void in solid matter; a gap, hole, or aperture.

   There was a little opening in the door they used as a peephole.

   Synonyms:

   rent, fissure, cleft, chasm, rift, breach, slit, orifice

5. a tract of land thinly wooded as compared with adjoining forest tracts.

6. the act of beginning; start; commencement.

   Tomorrow is the opening of a new session of Congress.

7. the first part or initial stage of anything.

   During the opening, the store had extra late hours.

8. an employment vacancy; an unfilled position or job.

   There are no openings for waitstaff at the moment.

9. an opportunity; chance.

10. a formal or official beginning, as of a sport season or a season's sale of goods.

    Today marks the opening of the deer-hunting season.

    Swimsuits sold well at the summer opening.

11. the first performance of a theatrical production.

12. the first public showing or use of something.

    It's rare for there to be so many journalists at the opening of an art exhibition.

13. a celebration of the first public showing or performance or of the first use or start of something.

    The new supermarket is going to give away prizes at its opening.

14. Law. the statement of the case made by counsel to the court or jury preliminary to adducing evidence.

15. a mode of beginning a game.

    a manual of chess openings.

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adjective

1. first, inaugural, commencing, or beginning.

   The opening chapter of the book caught my attention immediately.

opening British  

/ ˈəʊpənɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of making or becoming open

2. a vacant or unobstructed space, esp one that will serve as a passageway; gap

3. a tract in a forest in which trees are scattered or absent

4. the first part or stage of something

5. 1. the first performance of something, esp a theatrical production

   2. ( as modifier )

      the opening night

6. a specific or formal sequence of moves at the start of any of certain games, esp chess or draughts

7. an opportunity or chance, esp for employment or promotion in a business concern

8. law the preliminary statement made by counsel to the court or jury before adducing evidence in support of his case

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preopening
  adjective
• self-opening
  adjective
• unopening
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• openings
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of opening

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English; open ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. )

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Explanation

An opening is an empty space. That opening in the back of your closet might lead to a secret room. A job opening, on the other hand, is an available job that could open you up to an entirely new career. There are openings in crowds you can slip through if you're in a hurry, and openings, or availabilities, in classes you really want to take. You can also use this versatile noun to mean the very first performance of a play or the initial night of an art show. Many things that come first are openings, in fact, like the opening move in a chess game or the opening scene of your novel.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

opening openings

A 3-0 defeat at home to Switzerland was written off after Jack Hendry's early red card was quickly followed by an opening goal for the 12th-ranked Fifa nation.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

"Egypt and Rome, the Faces of Fayum", opening Wednesday at Rome's Ara Pacis museum, also includes mummies, masks, shrouds, jewellery, marble busts and statuary.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

The practice began in 2010 when Sonia-Wallace wrote custom poetry for travelers at a Metro line opening on a borrowed typewriter.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

Yet scientists are finding ways to capture evidence of their passage, opening new opportunities to investigate the cosmos and its most extreme environments.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

As he came out, opening his medicine pouch with trembling fingers, the horn slipped from his grasp.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

The number of job openings climbed to 7.52 million in September from 7.19 million in the prior month, the government said Tuesday.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

The researchers suspected that the gradual closing of the openings in LSECs might help explain why more of the protein remains in the bloodstream of older animals.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026

One-third of the increase in job openings was in state and local government — mostly in education, as school resumed.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

U.S. job openings rose in September while hiring held relatively steady, according to a report from the Labor Department’s monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

I flatten myself against the ground and creep forward so I’m facing the mountains, peering through openings between the orange plastic barriers.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

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Related Words

• commencement
• inauguration
• kickoff
• launch
• launching
• opener
• start

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