open its doors

verb

To begin operating.

“China opened its doors in the 1970s.”

Opposite
close its doors
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Meanings

verbopen its doors (third-person singular simple present opens its doors, present participle opening its doors, simple past and past participle opened its doors)

present singular third person opens its doors · participle present opening its doors · participle past opened its doors · past opened its doors

  1. To begin operating.

    Gay and Lesbian Health (GLH), which opened its doors in August as an outpatient mental health and substance abuse counseling agency specializing in substance abuse among lesbians and gay men, announced April 4 that the facility had closed, effective March 31.

    1989 April 15, Judy Harris, “Lesbian and Gay Health Closes”, in Gay Community News, page 3
  2. To allow or invite outside influence, investment or immigration.

    China opened its doors in the 1970s.

Synonyms & antonyms

Opposite
close its doors

Translations

Finnish aloittaa toimintansa, avata ovensa
  • aloittaa toimintansa(of a business) to begin operating
  • avata ovensa(of a business) to begin operating
French ouvrir ses portes
  • ouvrir ses portes(of a business) to begin operating
Hungarian megnyitja kapuit, megnyit
  • megnyitja kapuit(of a business) to begin operating
  • megnyit(of a business) to begin operating
Polish zostawać otwarty, zostać otwarty
  • zostawać otwarty(of a business) to begin operating
  • zostać otwarty(of a business) to begin operating
Cite this entry
APA

open its doors. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/open%20its%20doors

MLA

“open its doors.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/open%20its%20doors. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “open its doors,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/open%20its%20doors.

Source: open its doors on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.