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.
a plan for such a project.
participation or engagement in such projects.
Our country was formed by the enterprise of resolute men and women.
boldness or readiness in undertaking; adventurous spirit; ingenuity.
a company organized for commercial purposes; business firm.
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.
U.S. Aerospace. none Enterprise the first space shuttle, used for atmospheric flight and landing tests.
a project or undertaking, esp one that requires boldness or effort
participation in such projects
readiness to embark on new ventures; boldness and energy
initiative in business
( as modifier )
the enterprise culture
a business unit; a company or firm
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”
Enterprise describes a readiness to act boldly to get something started, like the enterprise it takes to start a charity with only a dream and a few dollars. Another meaning of enterprise is "a business venture," like a frozen yogurt enterprise. It requires a lot of determination, hard work and the steady belief that people will love your yogurt. People will say you show extraordinary enterprise for your willingness to take on such a challenging project, meaning you have initiative and drive.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mark Jamison is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, focusing on how technology affects the economy and on telecommunications and Federal Communications Commission issues.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 9, 2026
DIOSynVax, short for Digitally Immune Optimised Synthetic Vaccines, was founded in 2017 as a University of Cambridge spinout with support from Cambridge Enterprise, the university's commercialization arm.
From Science Daily • Jun. 5, 2026
Enterprise, meanwhile, was flown on those custom airplanes to John F. Kennedy International Airport and then traveled by barge to Manhattan’s Intrepid Museum in 2012.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 3, 2026
Take another tech hardware player, Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
From Barron's • Jun. 2, 2026
An inflatable solar system hung from the ceiling, with the sun and eight planets scaled to size, along with various starship Enterprise models.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
