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# opening

«opening» in Mova's school dictionary: **a gap or hole that something can pass through** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (an opening, openings); verb form (open, opens, opened, opening); adjective (the opening scene)

### meaning for a pupil

1) An opening is a gap or hole that something can pass through. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#m1)

2) An opening is the start of something, such as a story, film, game or match. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#m2)

3) An opening is a chance or a free job or place, such as a job opening. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#m3)

4) The opening of a shop, bridge or show is the event when it first starts to be used. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#m4)

5) Opening is the -ing form of open: making something open. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#m5)

### sense in the lessons

In stories the opening is the first part that grabs the reader; teachers ask pupils to write a strong opening. In science, animals and plants have openings (a mouth, a pore). In everyday life: opening hours, opening night, an opening ceremony. In chess and sport the opening is the first moves. Phrases: opening hours, opening line, grand opening, opening ceremony, an opening for (a chance).

### examples

- The mouse squeezed through a small opening in the fence. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x1)
- The opening of the story begins with a storm. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x2)
- The shop's opening hours are nine to five. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x3)
- The Olympic opening ceremony was full of fireworks. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x4)
- There is a job opening at the library. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x5)
- She is opening her birthday presents. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x6)
- The striker saw an opening and scored. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x7)
- Write an opening sentence that makes the reader curious. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x8)
- She saw an opening that led into the depths below. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/#x9)

### note

Countable: one opening, two openings. As a noun it is the start or a hole; as a verb form it needs be (is opening) or comes after other verbs. Opening hours = the times a place is open. Do not confuse with open (adjective): the door is open, not the door is opening, unless it is moving now.

### In the corpora

- [Warthogs often use old aardvark burrows and back in tail-first, so their tusks face the opening.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/125-timon-and-pumbaa-real-meerkats-and-warthogs/13/)
- [So the Badger leads them along a long secret tunnel to the edge of the wood and hides the opening behind them.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/40-willows-ch4-part4-the-city-under-the-wood/10/)
- [A few houseplants do very little to clean the air of a room; opening a window does far more.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chemistry/33-the-air-we-breathe/17/)
- [An opening hook, like «It was the worst day of my life», makes the reader want to know more.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/21-authors-choices-why-this-word-why-this-way/20/)
- [A story mountain shows the usual shape: opening, build-up, problem, resolution and ending.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/22-reading-a-story-characters-plot-and-setting/20/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «opening» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/opening/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.