English

Interjection

open sesame

1. Open up!

Translations

Noun

open sesame ‎(plural open sesames)

1. Any successful means of achieving a result, especially means that are magical or technical, or otherwise beyond the understanding of most people.
   • 1905, John Ruskin, The Works of John Ruskin, page lv,

     He who can read a true book aright has an open sesame to audiences with the great and wise of all time.

   • 1963, William J. Palmer, Trial Tactics in California, page 57,

     Relevancy not always an open sesame having in mind the over-all authority and discretion of the trial judge.

   • 2001 September 24, Gareth McLean, “Sympathy for a devil”, in The Guardian,

     When Mussolini was a young chap, he dabbled with socialism, imagining it to be an open sesame to a better society.

Translations