openBrE /ˈəʊpən/ NAmE /ˈoʊ-/► SEE ALLbe open to sthhave/keep an open mind (on/about sth)(out) in(to) the openin the open airon the open marketan open bookopen the door to/for sb/sthopen your/sb’s eyes (to sth)open fire (on sb/sth)open the floodgates (to sth)open your heart (to sb)(keep) open housean open invitation (to sb)an open letteropen your (big) mouthan open questionan open secretopen sesameopen the way for sb/sth (to do sth)with open armsburst openburst (sth) openleave the door open (for/on sth)keep your eyes open/peeled/skinned (for sb/sth)with your eyes openthe heavens openkeep/leave (all) your options openkeep a weather eye on sth/open for sthbe wide open(lay/leave yourself) wide open (to sth) ●be ˈopen to sthbe willing to consider sth愿意考虑（某事）◆We are open to any suggestions you care to make. 我们愿意考虑你想提出的任何建议。●have/keep an ˌopen ˈmind (on/about sth)be willing to change your opinion (on/about sth)愿意聆听（或接受）意见；（对…）不怀成见；思想开明◆I’ve still got an open mind on the question of nuclear defence. 对于核防御我没有任何成见。▸ˌopen-ˈminded
adjective
◆You can talk to her about anything — she’s very open-minded. 你什么事都可以跟她谈，她思想很开明。●(out) in(to) the ˈopenno longer/not hidden or secret公开的（地）◆The whole banking scandal came into the open after somebody found some confidential documents on a train. 有人在火车上发现了一些机密文件，也由此揭开了银行业的丑闻。●in the open ˈairoutside; not indoors户外；露天◆In summer I think it’s nice to eat in the open air. 我觉得夏天在户外吃饭很舒服。▸ˌopen-ˈair
adjective
◆an open-air swimming pool 露天游泳池●on the ˌopen ˈmarketavailable to buy without any restrictions在公开市场上；自由流通◆Firearms are not freely available on the open market. 小型枪支不能在公开市场上自由出售。OPPthe black market●an ˌopen ˈbooka person whose behaviour, attitudes, thoughts, etc. are very easy to understand, either because you know them very well or because they are very open and honest极了解的人；很熟悉的人；极坦率的人◆After living with her for 20 years, she’s an open book to me. 我与她共同生活了 20 年，对她了如指掌。◆His life is an open book. He has no secrets. 他的生活坦坦荡荡，没有任何秘密。OPPa closed book (to sb)●open the ˈdoor to/for sb/sthprovide sb with the chance or opportunity to do sth new, interesting, etc.为…敞开大门；给…提供良机◆Going to university opened the door to a whole new world for her. 上大学为她敞开了通往一个崭新世界的大门。●open your/sb’s ˈeyes (to sth)realize or make sb realize the truth about sth（使某人）认清事实，开眼界◆The trip to China really opened our eyes. 这次中国之旅让我们了解了事实。◆He opened my eyes to the beauty of poetry. 他使我意识到诗歌之美。▸an ˈeye-opener
noun
◆The programme on police methods was a real eye-opener for me. 这个关于警方探案招数的节目使我大开眼界。●open ˈfire (on sb/sth)start shooting (at sb/sth)（向…）开火，开枪◆The officer gave the order to open fire on the enemy. 指挥官下令向敌人开火。OPPhold your fire●open the ˈfloodgates (to sth)1.remove the restrictions or controls which for a long time have prevented a lot of people from doing sth they want to do打开…的泄洪闸；放开限制◆If the case is successful, it may open the floodgates to more damages claims against the industry. 要是这场官司打赢的话，那可能会引发更多要求该行业赔偿损失的官司。2.do sth which allows sb to express feelings which have been kept under control for a long time打开心扉；使…一吐为快◆The discussion sessions allow people to open the floodgates to their deepest fears. 这些讨论会使人们尽情倾诉心灵最深处的恐惧。●open your ˈheart (to sb)tell sb about your feelings, problems or worries倾诉感情（或难题、忧虑）◆She longed to be able to open her heart to someone who would understand. 她渴望向理解她的人倾诉衷肠。●(keep) open ˈhousebe willing to receive guests in your home at any time, and give them food, drink, etc.热情好客；对客人盛情款待◆It was always open house at their place. 他们家一贯热情好客。●an ˌopen inviˈtation (to sb)1.an invitation to sb to visit you at any time让某人随时可以来访的邀请2.if sth is an open invitation to criminals, etc., it encourages them to commit a crime by making it easier容易引诱人（犯罪等）的行为◆Leaving your camera on the seat in the car is an open invitation to thieves. 把照相机留在汽车座位上无异于开门揖盗。●an ˌopen ˈlettera letter containing a protest, piece of advice, etc. to a well-known person, which is published in a newspaper公开信◆In an open letter to the Prime Minister, six well-known authors attacked the government’s policy on the arts. 六位著名作家在致首相的公开信中批评了政府对艺术的政策。●open your (big) ˈmouth (informal) say sth when you should not多嘴；乱说◆Why do you always have to open your big mouth? Can’t you just keep quiet sometimes? 你怎么总是这么多嘴多舌的？你就不能安静一会儿？●an open ˈquestion ( open to ˈquestion) a matter that cannot be decided easily or that people hold several different views on悬而未决的问题；存有异议的问题◆Whether private schools give children a better education is open to question. 私立学校是否能给孩子更好的教育还没有定论。◆It’s an open question whether meat is bad for you. 肉类是否对身体有害尚存疑问。●an ˌopen ˈsecreta fact that is supposed to be a secret but that everyone knows公开的秘密◆It’s an open secret that they’re getting married. 他们要结婚了，这已经是个公开的秘密。●open ˈsesame (humorous) an easy way to gain or achieve sth that is usually very difficult to get开门咒；秘诀；（做成某事的）法宝◆Academic success is not always an open sesame to a well-paid job. 在校成绩好并不总是获得高薪工作的敲门砖。◆The bank had just closed but I banged on the door and — open sesame — they let me in! 银行刚刚关门，不过我用力敲了敲门 － 好像念了“芝麻开门”的咒语 － 他们居然让我进去了！ORIGINThis expression comes from the story Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. The words open sesame opened the door of the thieves’ cave where they kept their treasure.这个表达法源于《阿里巴巴和四十大盗》的故事。念“芝麻开门”的咒语，强盗们藏宝的山洞会自动开门。●open the way for sb/sth (to do sth)make it possible for sb to do sth or for sth to happen开方便之门◆A group of diplomats went first, in order to open the way for a personal visit by the President. 几位外交官先行前往，为总统的私访铺平道路。●with ˌopen ˈarmsif you welcome sb with open arms, you are extremely happy and pleased to see them张开双臂（欢迎）；热情地；诚挚地◆Don’t expect her to welcome you with open arms. She’s still very angry with you. 别指望她会热情地欢迎你，她还在生你的气呢。OPPgive sb/get the cold shoulder●ˌburst ˈopen●ˌburst (sth) ˈopenopen suddenly or violently; make sth open in this way（使）猛然打开，爆开◆The door burst open.门猛然开了。◆Firefighters burst the door open and rescued them.消防员撞开门把他们救了出来。●leave the ˈdoor open (for/on sth)make sure that there is still the possibility of doing sth不把门堵死；（为某事）留有余地◆The management were intelligent enough to leave the door open for further negotiations with the union.管理层很明智，他们没有关死和工会进一步协商的大门。●keep your ˈeyes open/peeled/skinned (for sb/sth)watch carefully (for sb/sth)保持警惕；密切注意◆Keep your eyes peeled, and if you see anything suspicious, call the police immediately.保持警惕，如果发现什么可疑迹象，立刻打电话报警。●with your ˈeyes openknowing what you are doing, what to expect, and what the results may be知道自己在做些什么；头脑清醒◆If a marriage is to work, both partners must go into it with their eyes open.如果想要婚姻美满，那么在步入婚姻殿堂的时候两个人都得头脑清醒，知道婚姻意味着什么。●the heavens ˈopenit suddenly begins to rain very heavily大雨倾盆◆We were walking back from the bus stop when suddenly the heavens opened.我们正从公共汽车站往回走，突然下起了倾盆大雨。●keep/leave (all) your ˈoptions openavoid making a decision now so that you still have a choice in the future保留选择余地；暂不作出决定◆Doing business with him is sometimes quite stressful. He likes to keep all his options open until the very last minute.跟他做生意有时候压力很大。他总喜欢到最后一刻才作决定。●keep a ˈweather eye on sth/open for sthwatch sth very carefully for signs of change so that you will be prepared for a problem, difficulty, etc.随时留意；小心提防◆It’s an ambassador’s job to keep a weather eye open for any important political changes.大使的职责就是随时留意重大的政治变革。●be wide ˈopen (of a competition, an election, etc.竞赛、选举等) with no obvious winner结果难以预料◆The presidential election is wide open.总统大选的结果难以预料。OPPa one-horse race●(lay/leave yourself) wide ˈopen (to sth)(put yourself) in a situation where you can easily be criticized, blamed, attacked, etc.（使自己）处于易受攻击（或责备等）的地位◆By not saying anything in your defence, you’re leaving yourself wide open to their accusations.你不为自己辩护，就只能任由他们指控。◆The soldiers were wide open to attack.士兵们完全暴露在敌人炮火之下。OPPcover your back