opening
Americannoun
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an act or instance of making or becoming open.
The opening of the tomb gathered much publicity.
- Antonyms:
- closing
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the act of a person or thing that opens.
Her opening of the ceremony was brilliantly handled.
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an unobstructed or unoccupied space or place.
That narrow opening between buildings is a good place to shelter from the rain.
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a void in solid matter; a gap, hole, or aperture.
There was a little opening in the door they used as a peephole.
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a tract of land thinly wooded as compared with adjoining forest tracts.
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the act of beginning; start; commencement.
Tomorrow is the opening of a new session of Congress.
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the first part or initial stage of anything.
During the opening, the store had extra late hours.
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an employment vacancy; an unfilled position or job.
There are no openings for waitstaff at the moment.
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an opportunity; chance.
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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.
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the first performance of a theatrical production.
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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.
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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.
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Law. the statement of the case made by counsel to the court or jury preliminary to adducing evidence.
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a mode of beginning a game.
a manual of chess openings.
adjective
noun
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the act of making or becoming open
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a vacant or unobstructed space, esp one that will serve as a passageway; gap
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a tract in a forest in which trees are scattered or absent
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the first part or stage of something
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the first performance of something, esp a theatrical production
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( as modifier )
the opening night
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a specific or formal sequence of moves at the start of any of certain games, esp chess or draughts
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an opportunity or chance, esp for employment or promotion in a business concern
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law the preliminary statement made by counsel to the court or jury before adducing evidence in support of his case
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of opening
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English; open ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. )
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.
Vocabulary lists containing opening
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.
She roared "lets go" after the pair raced through the tie-break to take the opening set.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
Last month, the High Court said the opening of the facility should be halted after a rights group opened a case alleging it posed "grave and imminent risks" to public health.
From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026
That math could benefit South Africa even if it loses its opening match.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026
Few shows are quite as ripely pubescent as this adaptation of the very popular “Every Summer After,” the debut of author Carley Fortune and the opening salvo in her “Barry’s Bay” series of romance novels.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026
People shouted back and forth, opening stalls, grabbing buckets and ropes.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
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.
