open field
/ˌəʊp(ə)n ˈfiːld/noun
1 Military. A battlefield allowing unrestricted passage in all directions, as opposed to a situation in which one side is defending a stronghold. Frequently in in (the) open field. Now chiefly historical.
- Sometimes having the implication that combat fought in the open field is fairer and more honourable..
2 Figurative. A lack of opposition or competition; an unrestricted or unchallenged opportunity.
3An unenclosed field; specifically a field of arable land without physical division by hedges, ditches, etc., used in common rather than by one owner.
- The adoption of the open-field system of agriculture in England is generally held to have taken place between the 9th and 12th centuries; see H. P. R. Finberg Agrarian Hist. Eng. & Wales (1972) I. 385–525; T. Rowley Origins Open-field Agric. (1981); C. C. Taylor Fields in Eng. Landscape (rev. ed., 2000) 47–70..
adjective
1Of, designating, or relating to a system of agriculture characterized by open fields. Now historical.
2 Amer. Football. Of or relating to a field on which the players are widely distributed. Hence of a player: active in the area of the field beyond the line of defence in which the defenders are spread widely apart.
Origin
Late 15th century; earliest use found in Merlin. From open + field.