opening
[noun]
Synonyms:
- hole, aperture, chink, cleft, crack, fissure, gap, orifice, perforation, slot, space
- opportunity, chance, look-in (informal), occasion, vacancy
- beginning, commencement, dawn, inception, initiation, launch, outset, start
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- first, beginning, inaugural, initial, introductory, maiden, primary

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Antonyms: closing

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English Thesaurus: break, smash, shatter, crack, burst, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. o‧pen‧ing¹ S3 /ˈəʊpənɪŋ $ ˈoʊ-/ noun
[Word Family: noun: the open, opener, opening, openness; adjective: open, opening, unopened; verb: open; adverb: openly]

1. [countable] the time when a new building, road etc is used for the first time, or when a public event begins, especially when it involves a special ceremony
opening of
the official opening of the new theatre
the opening of the Cannes film festival

2. [countable] a hole or space in something
opening in
a narrow opening in the fence

3. [countable usually singular] the beginning or first part of something
opening of
at the opening of the trial

4. [countable] a job that is available:
There are very few openings in scientific research.

5. [countable] a chance for someone to do or say something
opening for
His question left an opening for me to say exactly what I thought.

6. [uncountable] when something opens, or is opened
opening of
I was startled by the sudden opening of the door.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. opening² adjective [only before noun]
[Word Family: noun: the open, opener, opening, openness; adjective: open, opening, unopened; verb: open; adverb: openly]
first or beginning:
the opening match of the season
the opening chapter of the book
the chairman’s opening remarks

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

opening
noun
I. beginning
ADJ. successful | chess, conversational
OPENING + NOUN day, night | lines, pages | gambit
PREP. ~ to the famous opening to the novel

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

opening
II. hole; way in/out
ADJ. large, wide | narrow, small | window
VERB + OPENING cut | block, seal
PREP. ~ in to cut an opening in the fence

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

opening
III. opportunity; job which is available
ADJ. new | possible | clear (used in the context of sport and games) He missed one of the clearest openings in the game.
career, political
VERB + OPENING create Cooper created the opening for Russell to shoot the first goal.
give sb | miss
PREP. ~ for, ~ in career openings for biologists in the Ministry of Health

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

opening
IV. ceremony
ADJ. grand | formal | official, royal, state the state opening of Parliament
VERB + OPENING attend
OPENING + NOUN ceremony

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

break verb [intransitive] to become damaged and separate into pieces:
Plastic breaks quite easily.
smash verb [intransitive] to break after being hit with a lot of force:
The bowl smashed as it hit the floor.
shatter verb [intransitive] to break into a lot of small pieces:
The glass shattered all over the pavement.
crack verb [intransitive] if something cracks, a line appears on the surface, which means that it could later break into separate pieces:
The ice was starting to crack.
burst verb [intransitive] if a tyre, balloon, pipe etc bursts, it gets a hole and air or liquid suddenly comes out of it:
She blew up the balloon until it burst.
split verb [intransitive] to break in a straight line:
The damp had caused the wood to split.
crumble verb [intransitive] to break into a powder or a lot of small pieces:
The cork just crumbled in my hand.
hole an empty space in the surface of something, which sometimes goes all the way through it:
A fox had dug a hole under our fence.
Rain was coming in through a hole in the roof.
space an empty area between two things, into which you can put something:
Are there any empty spaces on the bookshelf?
a parking space
gap an empty area between two things or two parts of something, especially one that should not be there:
He has a gap between his two front teeth.
I squeezed through a gap in the hedge.
opening a hole that something can pass through or that you can see through, especially at the entrance of something:
The train disappeared into the dark opening of the tunnel.
I looked through the narrow opening in the wall.
leak a small hole where something has been damaged or broken that lets liquid or gas flow in or out:
a leak in the pipe
The plumber's coming to repair the leak.
puncture especially British English a small hole in a tyre through which air escapes:
My bike's got a puncture.
slot a straight narrow hole that you put a particular type of object into:
You have to put a coin in the slot before you dial the number.
A small disk fits into a slot in the camera.
crater a round hole in the ground made by an explosion or by a large object hitting it hard:
a volcanic crater
The meteor left a crater over five miles wide.
the craters on the moon

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hole an empty space in the surface of something, which sometimes goes all the way through it:
A fox had dug a hole under our fence.
Rain was coming in through a hole in the roof.
space an empty area between two things, into which you can put something:
Are there any empty spaces on the bookshelf?
a parking space
gap an empty area between two things or two parts of something, especially one that should not be there:
He has a gap between his two front teeth.
I squeezed through a gap in the hedge.
opening a hole that something can pass through or that you can see through, especially at the entrance of something:
The train disappeared into the dark opening of the tunnel.
I looked through the narrow opening in the wall.
leak a small hole where something has been damaged or broken that lets liquid or gas flow in or out:
a leak in the pipe
The plumber's coming to repair the leak.
puncture especially British English a small hole in a tyre through which air escapes:
My bike's got a puncture.
crack a very narrow space between two things or two parts of something:
The snake slid into a crack in the rock.
She was peering through the crack in the curtains.
slot a straight narrow hole that you put a particular type of object into:
You have to put a coin in the slot before you dial the number.
A small disk fits into a slot in the camera.
crater a round hole in the ground made by an explosion or by a large object hitting it hard:
a volcanic crater
The meteor left a crater over five miles wide.
the craters on the moon
make a hole in something to cause a hole to appear in something:
Make a hole in the bottom of the can using a hammer and nail.
pierce to make a small hole in or through something, using a pointed object:
The dog's teeth had pierced her skin.
Shelley wanted to have her ears pierced (=for earrings).
prick to make a very small hole in the surface of something, using a pointed object:
Prick the potatoes before baking them.
My finger was bleeding where the needle had pricked it.
punch to make a hole through paper or flat material using a metal tool or other sharp object:
I bought one of those things for punching holes in paper.
You have to get your ticket punched before you get on the train.
perforate formal to make a hole or holes in something:
Fragments of the bullet had perforated his intestines.
drill to make a hole using a special tool, often one which turns round and round very quickly:
The dentist started drilling a hole in my tooth.
They won a contract to drill for oil in the area.
bore to make a deep round hole through a rock, into the ground etc:
They had to bore through solid rock.
The men were boring a hole for the tunnel.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲