| leave open the possibility of leave open the possibility of (something/doing something) to not prevent something from happening. The spokesman left open the possibility of another meeting before the Israeli leader left Washington. Usage notes: also used with that: His retirement leaves open the possibility that a new judge will be appointed this year. followed by "of" in nearly 50% of cites, more than anything else; also exists as "hold/keep" open the possibility, but freq are 0.8/0.3 respectively--SL, 1/03 Related vocabulary: leave something open |