1
: perfectly simple : obvious
2
: easily settled
an open-and-shut case of grand larceny

Examples of open-and-shut in a Sentence

an open-and-shut case of robbery
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The jury deliberated for less than one hour per count to deliver its verdict, suggesting this was an open-and-shut case. The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 13 Jan. 2025 Everything comes to a head during a seemingly open-and-shut case of drug trafficking. James Marsh, Deadline, 10 Jan. 2025 Running back is another open-and-shut case with the same projection from before camp. Joe Buscaglia, The Athletic, 9 Aug. 2024 Meanwhile, the case’s ambitious prosecutor Faith Killebrew (Toni Collette) has political aspirations riding on the trial, while the defendant’s attorney Eric Resnick (Chris Messina) tells her this is hardly an open-and-shut case. Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2024 While everyone else sees an open-and-shut case, Justin’s life flashes before his eyes. Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 28 Oct. 2024 The trial has developed from what initially seemed to investigators like an open-and-shut case into a reckoning with a criminal justice system the public no longer trusts. Aja Romano, Vox, 3 July 2024 Though the case seems open-and-shut to the lead detective (Bill Camp), the show initially aligns itself closely with the alleged perpetrator and his lawyer (John Turturro), only to raise troubling questions later. Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2024 Variations in the gene’s expression would have provided a simple, open-and-shut way to explain how the evolutionary screws on rattlesnake motor neurons are adjusted. Quanta Magazine, 11 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1841, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of open-and-shut was in 1841

Dictionary Entries Near open-and-shut

Cite this Entry

“Open-and-shut.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/open-and-shut. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

open-and-shut

adjective
ˌōp-(ə-)nən-ˈshət
1
: perfectly plain : obvious
2
: easily settled
an open-and-shut case

More from Merriam-Webster on open-and-shut

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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