opened

1. 1
   verb

   Simple past and past participle of open.

   He opened the letter with trembling hands.

   The new bridge was opened to traffic last month.

   Note

   A regular past form: open simply adds -ed, so one spelling covers both the simple past (she opened it) and the participle (she has opened it). Because open works both with and without an object, so does this form: someone opened the door, or the door opened by itself. After have it builds the perfect; after be it builds the passive, as in a bridge opened to traffic.

2. 2
   adjective

   Made no longer closed; having been put into an open state through some prior action.

   The opened envelope lay on the desk, its contents missing.

   Most stores will not accept opened software for a refund.

   Similarunlocked

   Oppositeclosed

   Note

   Where open describes a state, this adjective records an event. An opened envelope has been torn into by someone, and opened goods have had their seal broken, which is why returns policies care about the difference. It is the past participle put before a noun, and it takes no degrees: nothing is more opened than another. Its opposite is closed, and unlocked is a near synonym.

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