English

Noun

open season ‎(plural open seasons)

1. (hunting, sometimes followed by on or for to designate the kind of animal hunted) A period of time during the calendar year when authorities within a jurisdiction permit the unrestricted hunting of one or more kinds of animal wildlife.
   • 1912, Jack London, The Scarlet Plague, ch. 1:

     "But there weren't many crabs in those days," the old man wandered on. "They were fished out, and they were great delicacies. The open season was only a month long, too."

2. (figuratively, often followed by on or for) A situation in which someone is endangered, blamed, harassed, or opposed in a sustained manner by a number of others; a situation in which something is endangered or otherwise opposed.
   • 1919, William MacLeod Raine, A Man Four-Square, Prologue:

     In the country of the Clantons there was always an open season on any one of his name.

   • 1964 March 20, "Patents: Knocking Down the Pole," Time:

     The court thus overruled all the states' protective laws, except against outright fraud, and declared open season on any products not protected by patents.

   • 2009, "Tawny Weber," Coming on Strong, ISBN 9780373794669, p. 37:

     The paparazzi and gossip hounds have declared open season on celebrities.

3. (idiomatic, often followed by on or for) A situation in which or period of time during which some activity or circumstance routinely occurs.
   • 1921, Peter B. Kyne, The Pride of Palomar, ch. 15:

     "My dear Miss Parker, this is the open season on terrible practical jokes."

   • 1959 Oct. 26, "Music: Curtains Up!," Time:

     The open season on culture in Manhattan used to begin with the first stroke of a Metropolitan Opera baton.

Translations

References

• open season at OneLook Dictionary Search