Opener

How to spell opener

6 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce opener

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does opener mean?

1. nounA tool or device used to open something, such as a bottle, tin, or letter.
2. nounThe first thing in a series, such as the first match, song, or remark.

Opener in a sentence

• The bottle opener was hanging on a hook by the fridge.

• The band played their biggest hit as the opener of the concert.

• She kept a small letter opener in the top drawer of her desk.

• The team won the season opener by two goals.

Where does opener come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

The word is built on 'open', a thoroughly native word that comes from Old English 'open', meaning 'not shut' or 'uncovered', which traces back to the Proto-Germanic root that also gave Dutch 'open' and German 'offen'. The agent suffix '-er', likewise inherited from Old English, attaches to verbs and nouns to name the person or instrument that performs an action, as in 'baker' or 'cooker'. Joined together, 'opener' simply names a thing that opens something, a usage that grew naturally as household tools such as tin and bottle openers became common in the nineteenth century. The same '-er' formation later spread to figurative uses, so an 'opener' could be the first item in a sequence, such as the first match of a season or the first remark in a conversation. Because both halves are plain everyday English, the spelling holds no foreign surprises: it is just 'open' with a regular ending.

How the word is built

• open (Old English open, uncovered)
• -er (agent/instrument suffix: thing or person that does the action)