enterprise

¹

[en-ter-prahyz]

noun

1. a project undertaken or to be undertaken, especially one that is important or difficult or that requires boldness or energy.

   To keep the peace is a difficult enterprise.

   Synonyms: venture, undertaking, plan

2. a plan for such a project.

3. participation or engagement in such projects.

   Our country was formed by the enterprise of resolute men and women.

4. boldness or readiness in undertaking; adventurous spirit; ingenuity.

   Synonyms: ambition, push, aggressiveness, drive

5. a company organized for commercial purposes; business firm.

6. Military.,  none Enterprise the first nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier, commissioned in 1961, with a displacement of 89,000 tons (80,723 metric tons) and eight reactors.

7. U.S. Aerospace.,  none Enterprise the first space shuttle, used for atmospheric flight and landing tests.

adjective

1. intended for use or consumption by a business firm rather than a consumer.

   enterprise security; enterprise software.

Enterprise

²

[en-ter-prahyz]

noun

1. a city in southern Alabama.

enterprise

/ ˈɛntəˌpraɪz /

noun

1. a project or undertaking, esp one that requires boldness or effort

2. participation in such projects

3. readiness to embark on new ventures; boldness and energy

4. 1. initiative in business

   2. ( as modifier )

      the enterprise culture

5. a business unit; a company or firm

Other Word Forms

• enterpriseless adjective
• enterpriser noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of enterprise¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Middle French, noun use of feminine of entrepris (past participle of entreprendre “to undertake”), from Latin inter- inter- + prehēnsus, prēnsus, past participle of prehendere, prēndere “to grasp, seize,” equivalent to pre- pre- + -hendere “to grasp”

Word History and Origins

Origin of enterprise¹

C15: from Old French entreprise (n), from entreprendre from entre- between (from Latin: _inter- ) + prendre to take, from Latin prehendere to grasp

Idioms and Phrases

see free enterprise.

Example Sentences

Kerr was one of the sport’s earliest champions, before it became a multi-billion-dollar enterprise and his career was derailed by an addiction to painkillers.

From Los Angeles Times

The elder Shalhoub’s love of the stuff served as one of the inspirations for the whole enterprise.

From Los Angeles Times

The legal drama generated global attention and offered a graphic and often violent glimpse into the life of one of the nation’s most powerful music figures and his nearly billion-dollar enterprise.

From Los Angeles Times

They had previously been characterized as entirely herbivorous, like gorillas, Goodall observed them hunting, killing and eating small mammals such as bush pigs and colobus monkeys, by any standard a complicated collaborative enterprise.

From Salon

"The future oversight of Gaza needs a broader base and cannot look like an American/British enterprise."

From BBC

Related Words

• activity 
• business 
• company 
• firm 
• operation 
• program 
• project 
• trade 
• venture