- 1 allowing things or people to go through A wasp flew in the open window. She had left the door wide open. The door flew open and the children rushed in. opposite closed Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, gape, hang, … adverbfully, wide, partially, … See full entry
- 2 (of somebody’s eyes, mouth, etc.) with eyelids or lips apart She had difficulty keeping her eyes open (= because she was very tired). He was breathing through his open mouth. opposite closed Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, gape, hang, … adverbfully, wide, partially, … See full entry
- 3 spread out; with the edges apart The flowers are all open now. The book lay open on the table. opposite closed Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, gape, hang, … adverbfully, wide, partially, … See full entry
- 4 not blocked by anything The pass is kept open all the year. opposite closed Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, gape, hang, … adverbfully, wide, partially, … See full entry not fastened
- 5 not fastened or covered, so that things can easily come out or be put in Leave the envelope open. The bag burst open and everything fell out. Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, gape, hang, … adverbfully, wide, partially, … See full entry
- 6 (of clothes) not fastened Her coat was open. Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, gape, hang, … adverbfully, wide, partially, … See full entry See related entries: Describing clothes not enclosed
- 7 not surrounded by anything; not confined open country (= without forests, buildings, etc.) a city with a lot of parks and open spaces driving along the open road (= part of a road in the country, where you can drive fast) not covered
- 8 with no cover or roof on an open drain people working in the open air (= not in a building) The hall of the old house was open to the sky. an open wound (= with no skin covering it) (North American English) an open flame In British English this is called a naked flame. for customers/visitors
- 9 [not usually before noun] if a shop/store, bank, business, etc. is open, it is ready for business and will admit customers or visitors Is the museum open on Sundays? The new store will be open in the spring. The house had been thrown open to the public. I declare this festival open. opposite closed Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, declare something adverbofficially See full entry of competition/building
- 10if a competition, etc. is open, anyone can enter it synonym public an open debate/championship/scholarship She was tried in open court (= the public could go and listen to the trial). The debate was thrown open to the audience.
- 11 [not before noun] open to somebody if a competition, building, etc. is open to particular people, those people can enter it The competition is open to young people under the age of 18. The house is not open to the public. opposite closed available
- 12 [not before noun] open (to somebody) to be available and ready to use What options are open to us? Is the offer still open? I want to keep my Swiss bank account open. opposite closed Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, remain, stay, … prepositionto See full entry not protected
- 13 open (to something) likely to suffer something such as criticism, injury, etc. synonym vulnerable The system is open to abuse. He has laid himself wide open to political attack. Kasparov had left his bishop open (= not protected, in a game of chess). not hidden
- 14 known to everyone; not kept hidden an open quarrel open government their open display of affection His eyes showed open admiration as he looked at her. person’s character
- 15 honest; not keeping thoughts and feelings hidden synonym frank She was always open with her parents. He was quite open about his reasons for leaving. Synonymshonestfrank direct open outspoken straight bluntThese words all describe people saying exactly what they mean without trying to hide feelings, opinions or facts.honest not hiding the truth about something:Thank you for being so honest with me.frank honest in what you say, sometimes in a way that other people might not like:To be frank with you, I think your son has little chance of passing the exam.direct saying exactly what you mean in a way that nobody can pretend not to understand:You’ll have to get used to his direct manner. Being direct is sometimes considered positive but sometimes it is used as a ‘polite’ way of saying that somebody is rude.open (approving) (of a person) not keeping thoughts and feelings hidden:He was quite open about his reasons for leaving.outspoken saying exactly what you think, even if this shocks or offends people:She was outspoken in her criticism of the plan.straight honest and direct:I don’t think you’re being straight with me.blunt saying exactly what you think without trying to be polite:She has a reputation for blunt speaking.which word? Honest and frank refer to what you say as much as how you say it:a(n) honest/frank admission of guilt. They are generally positive words, although it is possible to be too frank in a way that other people might not like. Direct, outspoken and blunt all describe somebody’s manner of saying what they think. Outspoken suggests that you are willing to shock people by saying what you believe to be right. Blunt and direct often suggest that you think honesty is more important than being polite. Open is positive and describes somebody’s character:I’m a very open person.Patterns honest/frank/direct/open/outspoken/straight about something honest/frank/direct/open/straight/blunt with somebody a(n) honest/direct/straight/blunt answer a frank/direct/blunt manner Oxford Collocations Dictionary verbsbe, seem adverbextremely, fairly, very, … prepositionabout, with See full entry See related entries: Honest
- 16 open to something (of a person) willing to listen to and think about new ideas I'm open to suggestions for what you would like to do in our classes. not yet decided
- 17open (to something) not yet finally decided or settled The race is still wide open (= anyone could win). The price is not open to negotiation. Some phrases in the contract are open to interpretation. Which route is better remains an open question (= it is not decided). In an interview try to ask open questions (= to which the answer is not just ‘yes’ or ‘no’). cloth
- 18with wide spaces between the threads an open weave phonetics
- 19 (also low) (of a vowel) produced by opening the mouth wide compare close2 Word OriginOld English open (adjective), openian (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch open and German offen, from the root of the adverb up.Extra examples I don’t think you’ve been completely open with me. I found the door open. I tried to pry open the locket. In spite of the snow, the roads remained open. It’s very open where they live. She flipped open Chris’s diary. She flung the door open and rushed in. She held the door open for them. She stared at him, her mouth hanging open. She’s very open about her mistakes. Some of the supermarkets stay open till ten. Suddenly the door flew open. The Australian premier declared the Olympic Games open. The bag fell open. The book lay open in front of him. The bridge is officially open now. The car park is only open to residents. The door was wide open. The gate swung open. The woman’s mouth sagged open. We want to keep the school open. fairly open countryside I am a very open person and get along with most people. One more border skirmish could lead to open war. We need more open government, starting with a Freedom of Information Act. an open display of affectionIdioms
- 1an invitation to somebody to visit you at any time
- 2if something is an open invitation to criminals, etc., it encourages them to commit a crime by making it easier Leaving your camera on the seat in the car is an open invitation to thieves.
not closed
if something is an open secret, many people know about it, although it is supposed to be a secret
to open suddenly or violently; to make something open in this way The door burst open. Firefighters burst the door open and rescued them.
to be willing to listen to or accept new ideas or suggestions
to be quick to notice or hear things
to look for somebody/something while you are doing other things Police have asked residents to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.
to avoid making a decision now so that you still have a choice in the future At the moment I'm keeping my options open and applying for as many different jobs as possible.
available to buy without any restrictions
if you describe somebody or their life as an open book, you mean that you can easily understand them and know everything about them
fully aware of the possible problems or results of a particular course of action I went into this with my eyes open so I guess I only have myself to blame.
if you welcome somebody with open arms, you are extremely happy and pleased to see them
Check pronunciation: open
