Etymologically
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open

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈəʊ.pən/, US /ˈoʊ.pən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English open, inherited from Old English open (“not closed; raised up; evident”),[2][3] from Proto-Germanic *upanaz,[4] which has the form of a strong past participle formed from the root of up, as if meaning “put or set up”,[4][5][2] although no such Germanic verb has been found.[2] Its cognates include Old Frisian epen, Old Saxon opan, Dutch open, Old High German offan (modern German offen) and Old Norse opinn;[3][5] it is not recorded in Gothic.[3] Etymonline traces the root further to Proto-Indo-European *upo (“under, up from under”).[2] The verb is inherited from Old English openian, formed from the adjective,[2][3][5] with cognates such as opanōn, offanōn (modern öffnen) and opna.[3][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old English open is recorded about 725, in Beowulf, of gates, eyelids and the like, meaning “not closed” or “raised up”,[3][2] and also meant “exposed, evident, public”, often in a bad sense, “notorious, shameless”.[2] The verb openian meant “to open”, and also “to disclose, reveal”.[2]

Semantic evolution

Of physical spaces the adjective meant “unobstructed” by about 1200, of rooms with unclosed entrances about 1300, and of wounds in the late 14th century.[2] The figurative sense “frank, candid” is from the early 14th century,[2] and of shops “ready for business” from 1824.[2] The noun meant “an aperture” in the early 13th century;[2][5] the open, the open country, is from the 1620s, and “public knowledge” (out in the open) from 1942, though Middle English already had in open “publicly”.[2] An open competition is first a golf term, from 1926.[2] The verb in the sense “to begin” is dated to 1471 by the HTOED[7] and to the 1690s by Etymonline,[2] and open up “to stop being secretive” is from 1921.[2] Phrases include open house (1824), open-and-shut (1841, New Orleans), open book (1853), open door in trade (1856) and open season (1895 of game, 1914 of people).[2][3]

Timeline

  • c. 725 – Old English open (Beowulf).[3]
  • before 725 – verb openian.[3]
  • c. 1200 – unobstructed, of places.[2]
  • early 13th century – noun, an aperture.[2]
  • early 14th century – frank, candid.[2]
  • 1420 – open air.[3]
  • 1440 – opener.[3]
  • 1471 – verb, to begin.[7]
  • 1620s – the open, open country.[2]
  • 1824 – of shops, open for business, and open house.[2]
  • 1841 – open-and-shut.[2][3]
  • 1856 – open door, in trade.[2][3]
  • 1921 – open up, to talk freely.[2]
  • 1926 – an open competition, in golf.[2]
  • 1942 – in the open, public knowledge.[2]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Not shut or closed, so that one can pass through: an open door.
  2. Without a cover or protection; exposed.
  3. Plain to see; blatant, not hidden.
  4. Spread out or unfolded.
  5. Having gaps or spaces between the parts.
  6. Available to everyone; not restricted.
  7. Frank and candid.

Verb

  1. To move (a door, lid etc.) so that it is no longer closed.
  2. To clear of obstructions, or make an opening in.
  3. To spread out or unfold.
  4. To begin or start: open a meeting.
  5. To become open; to begin business or operation.

Noun

  1. An open, unobstructed stretch of land or water, or (the open) the outdoors.
  2. A state of being known to all: out in the open.
  3. A tournament open to both professionals and amateurs.

Word family

  • openly
  • openness
  • openable
  • open-label
  • open-cast
  • open-minded
  • openhearted
  • up
  • opening
  • opener

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z 27 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)