Adjacent Words

open sesame definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: any very successful means of achieving a result
2: a magical command; used by Ali Baba

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: from open sesame, the magical command used by Ali Baba to open the door of the robbers' den in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Date: circa 1837 something that unfailingly brings about a desired end

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sesame Ses"a*me, n. [L. sesamum, sesama, Gr. ????, ???: cf. F. s['e]same.] (Bot.) Either of two annual herbaceous plants of the genus Sesamum (S. Indicum, and S. orientale), from the seeds of which an oil is expressed; also, the small obovate, flattish seeds of these plants, sometimes used as food. See Benne. Open Sesame, the magical command which opened the door of the robber's den in the Arabian Nights' tale of ``The Forty Thieves;'' hence, a magical password. Sesame grass. (Bot.) Same as Gama grass.

Moby Thesaurus

Rasputin, Svengali, VIP, abracadabra, access, bad influence, big wheel, bottle opener, can opener, church key, clavis, conjuration, corkscrew, countersign, court, eminence grise, five-percenter, friend at court, good influence, gray eminence, heavyweight, hidden hand, hocus-pocus, incantation, influence, influence peddler, influencer, ingroup, key, kingmaker, latchkey, latchstring, lobby, lobbyist, lords of creation, magic formula, magic words, man of influence, manipulator, master key, mumbo jumbo, opener, passkey, password, powers that be, pressure group, secret grip, shibboleth, sinister influence, skeleton key, special interests, special-interest group, tessera, the Establishment, ticket, tin opener, token, very important person, watchword, wheeler-dealer, wire-puller