Etymologically
Log in

reopen

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 15:31. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • /ɹiːˈəʊpən/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English re- + open, with the prefix meaning "again".[2][3][4][5][6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

To open again something that had been physically closed, also figuratively, especially of wounds: 1605, in a sonnet by J. Sylvester.[2][5] Etymonline first finds it in 1733, of opening a theatre or a question again,[3] and Dictionary.com dates it to 1725–35.[6]

Semantic evolution

The intransitive use, of something closed opening again, is recorded from 1753, in Smollett's Ferdinand Count Fathom;[2] Etymonline dates it to 1830.[3] From 1756 the verb was used of starting a process such as negotiations again;[2] from 1805, in The Times, it was also used of taking up again the discussion of something already settled or decided.[2][4] A military sense, to begin firing again, follows in 1818, modelled on to open fire.[2][4] The phrase reopen old wounds, to revive a painful memory or quarrel, continues the early figurative use.[2]

Timeline

  • 1605 – to open again something closed; also figurative, of wounds.[2][5]
  • 1753 – intransitive, to open again.[2]
  • 1756 – to begin a process such as negotiations again.[2]
  • 1805 – to resume the discussion of a settled matter.[2][4]
  • 1818 – to begin firing again.[2][4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To open something again after it has been closed: The council reopened the bridge after repairs.[8][5][2]
  2. Of a shop, school, theatre and the like, to open again; to start operating again: The museum will reopen next spring.[8][2][4]
  3. To take up again or resume a process, such as talks or an investigation.[8][5][2]
  4. To bring up again for discussion or consideration a matter that had been settled.[5][2][4]
  5. To begin firing again.[2][4]

Word family

  • reopener

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  7. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  8. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins