Phrase guide

open source

noun · verb · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /ˈoʊpən ˌsɔɹs/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The practice of providing open-source code for a product.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences, software

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Open-source software in general.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences, software

Examples

  • His contributions to open source are numerous.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Information that is in the public domain and available to everybody.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: espionage, government, military, politics, war

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

Alternative form of open-source.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, alternative

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Compound of open + source, coined by Christine Peterson in 1998 for software as an umbrella term to encompass existing concepts such as free software, freedomware, and sourceware.

Across languages

Translations

45 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: codi obert — practice
  • Catalan: codi font obert — practice
  • Chinese Mandarin: 開源 /开源 (kāiyuán) — practice
  • Chinese Mandarin: 開放原始碼 /开放原始码 (kāifàngyuánshǐmǎ) — practice
  • Dutch: open source — practice
  • Finnish: avoin lähdekoodi — practice
  • French: code source ouvert — practice
  • German: Open Source — practice
  • Greek: ανοικτός κώδικας (anoiktós kódikas) — practice
  • Irish: foinse oscailte — practice
  • Italian: codice aperto — practice
  • Italian: open source — practice
  • Japanese: オープンソース (ōpun sōsu) — practice
  • Portuguese: código aberto — practice
  • Sicilian: còdici raputu — practice
  • Sicilian: open source — practice
  • Spanish: código abierto — practice
  • Swedish: öppen källkod — practice
  • Swedish: open source — practice
  • Tamil: திறமூலம் (tiṟamūlam) — practice
  • Thai: โอเพนซอร์ส — practice
  • Zhuang: haigoek — practice
  • Catalan: codi obert — software
  • Catalan: codi font obert — software
  • Chinese Mandarin: 開源軟件 /开源软件 (kāiyuán ruǎnjiàn) — software
  • Chinese Mandarin: 開放原始碼軟體 /开放原始码软体 (kāifàngyuánshǐmǎ ruǎntǐ) — software
  • Finnish: avoin lähdekoodi — software
  • French: libre — software
  • French: open source — software
  • French: source ouverte — software
  • German: Open-Source-Software — software
  • Greek: ανοικτός κώδικας (anoiktós kódikas) — software
  • Greek: ανοικτός πηγαίος κώδικας (anoiktós pigaíos kódikas) — software
  • Italian: codice aperto — software
  • Italian: open source — software
  • Japanese: オープンソースソフトウェア (ōpun sōsu sofutowhea) — software
  • Portuguese: código aberto — software
  • Romanian: software de sursă deschisă — software
  • Romanian: software de open-source — software
  • Sicilian: còdici raputu — software
  • Sicilian: open source — software
  • Thai: โอเพนซอร์ส — software
  • Turkish: açık kaynak yazılım — software
  • Turkish: açık kaynak — software
  • Vietnamese: phần mềm nguồn mở — software