1
of software : having the source code freely available for possible modification and redistribution
an open-source operating system
2
: of, relating to, or promoting open-source software
the open-source movement/community

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Funds include an operations budget to help run the non-profit and a legal defense fund to help open-source developers in court. Michael Del Castillo, Forbes, 4 May 2023 Prosus has experimented with several different LLMs and other text-to-image generators from different vendors and open-source hubs. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 2 May 2023 Monday by the German nonprofit that develops Mastodon’s open-source code. Rob Pegoraro, PCMAG, 2 May 2023 After a Chinese surveillance balloon flying over the US earlier this year provoked an international incident, open-source intelligence analysts went blimp hunting. Tim Fernholz, Quartz, 1 May 2023 The Flipper is an open-source hacking tool of exceptional polish and functionality. IEEE Spectrum, 26 Apr. 2023 Enthusiasts who use open-source material to track the Chinese air force believe the base is home to a regiment of the Eastern Theater’s 10th bomber division, the branch most likely to conduct air attacks if China launches a full-scale assault on Taiwan. Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 18 Apr. 2023 Although medics are allowed to carry guns for self-defense under international humanitarian law, a November 2019 report by Offbeat Research, an open-source investigative group, suggests FBR has gone on offensives alongside Kurdish militias in Syria, citing the group’s own video footage as evidence. Jason Motlagh, Rolling Stone, 16 Apr. 2023 While many of them were deleted recently, open-source intelligence researchers have managed to download more than 60 files. Yaroslav Trofimov, wsj.com, 7 Apr. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'open-source.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1998, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of open-source was in 1998

Cite this Entry

“Open-source.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/open-source. Accessed 6 May. 2023.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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