open sesame

3 definitions found

open sesame - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  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
     (Sesamum Indicum, and Sesamum 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.
     [1913 Webster]
  
     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.
        [1913 Webster]

open sesame - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

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

open sesame - Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 :

  61 Moby Thesaurus words for "open sesame":
     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