Library / English Dictionary

OPPORTUNITY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances

Example:

now is your chance

Synonyms:

chance; opportunity

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("opportunity" is a kind of...):

possibility; possibleness (capability of existing or happening or being true)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "opportunity"):

brass ring (a rich opportunity or a prize)

day (a period of opportunity)

clean slate; fresh start; tabula rasa (an opportunity to start over without prejudice)

audience; hearing (an opportunity to state your case and be heard)

hunting ground (a place where opportunities abound)

occasion (an opportunity to do something)

opening (opportunity especially for employment or promotion)

room (opportunity for)

say (the chance to speak)

crack; shot (a chance to do something)

street (a situation offering opportunities)

throw (a single chance or instance)

Derivation:

opportune (suitable or at a time that is suitable or advantageous especially for a particular purpose)

Credits

 Context examples: 

But Gladys—was it not the very opportunity of which she spoke?

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The largest asteroid ever recorded has passed Earth at a distance of 145 million miles, giving scientists the opportunity to learn more about its physical characteristics.

(Biggest Asteroid Ever Detected Flies Past Earth, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

This finding creates an opportunity to determine ways to restore oxygen loss and potentially reduce life-long impacts of preterm survivors.

(Lack of Oxygen, Not Blood Flow, Delays Brain Maturation in Preterm Infants, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

This relatively close encounter provides an opportunity for scientists to study this asteroid up close.

(Large Asteroid to Safely Pass Earth on Sept. 1, NASA)

Thanks to our sun's rumblings, Voyager has the opportunity to listen to the singing of interstellar space — an otherwise silent place.

(Sun sends more 'tsunami waves' to Voyager 1, NASA)

While this celestial object does not appear to pose any threat to Earth or satellites, its close approach creates a unique opportunity for researchers to observe and learn more about asteroids.

(Small Asteroid to Safely Pass Close to Earth Sunday, NASA)

Bennu's activity presents larger opportunities once a sample is collected and returned to Earth for study.

(NASA's OSIRIS-REx Explains Bennu Mystery Particles, NASA)

The host who heard this, laughed and said: If that is your desire, there ought to be a good opportunity for you here.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

Recalling a memory, then, opens a window of opportunity for that memory to be changed — what researchers call a "reconsolidation window."

(How Our Memory Works, NIH, US)

In what is called a target-of-opportunity observation, NuSTAR was redirected to take a look at high-energy X-rays from this source in the range of 3 to 79 kiloelectron volts.

(NuSTAR sees rare blurring of black hole light, NASA)