Showing results for "undertaking"

• present participle of undertake.

undertaking

American  

[uhn-der-tay-king, uhn-der-tay-, uhn-der-tay-king] / ˌʌn dərˈteɪ kɪŋ, ˈʌn dərˌteɪ-, ˈʌn dərˌteɪ kɪŋ /

noun

• undertakings
  plural

1. the act of a person who undertakes any task or responsibility.

2. a task, enterprise, etc., undertaken.

   Synonyms:

   venture, effort, job, endeavor, project

3. a promise; pledge; guarantee.

4. the business of an undertaker or funeral director.

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undertaking British  

/ ˈʌndəˌteɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. something undertaken; task, venture, or enterprise

2. an agreement to do something

3. the business of an undertaker

4. informal the practice of overtaking on an inner lane a vehicle which is travelling in an outer lane

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• undertakings
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of undertaking

Middle English word dating back to 1325–75; see origin at under, taking

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Explanation

Painting a house is a serious undertaking––it looks simple but involves a lot of preparation and hard work. An undertaking is a job or a task you commit to. The word also can mean the profession of funeral management. When you take something under consideration, it means you're not necessarily going to do it, you're just going to think about it. When you take something on, you've undertaken to actually do it. The word undertaking suggests something that involves quite a bit of work. Organizing an Oxfam hunger-day at your school is a significant undertaking, but it's worth all the effort.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

undertaking undertakings

Though I’d say we’ve reached a point where that undertaking is worthwhile.

From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026

Given Mr. Dimon’s track record of persuasiveness, he could engage his fellow business leaders to support a nonpartisan undertaking like this.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

The Department of Homeland Security called the undertaking the “largest DHS operation ever” earlier this year on X, with an estimated 2,000 agents deployed to the Minneapolis–St. Paul metropolitan area.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026

Rather than keeping to an established formula, the Ultimate Championship was a bold, innovative undertaking - and it is hoped it can exist as a testing ground to help shape the sport's future.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

Though long-distance travel in antiquity was never a trivial undertaking, a summer voyage to Egypt would have been a pleasant journey.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro

If it is satisfied that the undertakings address its concerns, it will conditionally clear the deal, the regulator said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

"Recent decisions were bound by certain undertakings and my resignation enables the Adelaide Festival, as an organisation, to refresh its leadership and its approach to these circumstances," she said.

From Barron's ● Jan. 12, 2026

While customers were still taking on smaller renovation projects, they were staying away from bigger undertakings like kitchen and bath remodels, he said.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 18, 2025

Civil rights cases in particular are complex undertakings usually lasting years.

From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2025

I think Mr. Hofacket would have stood there all day and drunk in the praise he’d earned during this strangest of undertakings.

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly

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Related Words

• affair
• effort
• enterprise
• experiment
• operation
• project
• proposition
• task
• venture

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