opening: Meaning and Definition of

o•pen•ing

1. an act or instance of making or becoming open.
2. the act of a person or thing that opens.
3. an unobstructed or unoccupied space or place.
4. a void in solid matter; a gap, hole, or aperture.
5. a tract of land thinly wooded as compared with adjoining forest tracts.
6. the act of beginning; start; commencement: the opening of a new session of Congress.
7. the first part or initial stage of anything.
8. an employment vacancy; an unfilled position or job: There are no openings for clerks today.
9. an opportunity; chance.
10. a formal or official beginning, as of a sport season or a season's sale of goods: the opening of the deer-hunting season; Swimsuits sold well at the summer opening.
11. the first performance of a theatrical production.
12. the first public showing or use of something: the opening of an art exhibition.
13. a celebration of the first public showing or performance or of the first use or start of something: The new supermarket is going to give away prizes at its opening.
14. the statement of the case made by counsel to the court or jury preliminary to adducing evidence.
15. a mode of beginning a game: a manual of chess openings.