An opening ceremony is the official opening of a building or event. The opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup are huge events involving thousands of participants and watched by a massive worldwide audience. On a much smaller scale, some ceremonies mark the opening of a small building such as a shop and are only attended by relatives or friends. Many public buildings, especially schools and libraries, are opened by a special guest.
Famous quotes containing the words opening and/or ceremony:
“Fellow citizens, I have been called upon to conduct this opening meeting of the Osage First Methodist-Episcopalian-Presbyterian-Congregational-Baptist-Catholic-Unitarian-Hebrew Church.”
—Howard Estabrook (1884–1978)
“But ceremony never did conceal,
Save to the silly eye, which all allows,
How much we are the woods we wander in.”
—Richard Wilbur (b. 1921)