ambitious

[am-bish-uhs]

adjective

1. having ambition; eagerly desirous of achieving or obtaining success, power, wealth, a specific goal, etc..

   The school is known for its ambitious students.

   Antonyms: lackadaisical, apathetic

2. showing or caused by ambition or an earnest desire for achievement or distinction.

   This season saw an ambitious attempt to break the record for number of wins in a single season.

3. strongly desirous; eager.

   It is common for children to be ambitious of love and approval.

4. requiring exceptional effort, ability, etc..

   The candidate is proposing an ambitious program for eliminating all slums.

ambitious

/ æmˈbɪʃəs /

adjective

1. having a strong desire for success or achievement; wanting power, money, etc

2. necessitating extraordinary effort or ability

   an ambitious project

3. (often foll by of) having a great desire (for something or to do something)

Other Word Forms

• ambitiously adverb
• ambitiousness noun
• nonambitious adjective
• nonambitiously adverb
• nonambitiousness noun
• overambitious adjective
• overambitiously adverb
• overambitiousness noun
• unambitious adjective
• unambitiously adverb
• unambitiousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ambitious¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin ambitiōsus, equivalent to ambiti(ō) ambition + -ōsus -ous

Synonym Study

Ambitious, aspiring, enterprising describe a person who wishes to rise above their present position or condition. The ambitious person wishes to attain worldly success, and puts forth effort toward this end: ambitious for social position. The enterprising person, interested especially in wealth, is characterized by energy and daring in undertaking projects. The aspiring person wishes to rise (mentally or spiritually) to a higher level or plane, or to attain some end above ordinary expectations.

Example Sentences

One of the year’s most ambitious offerings, the stunning “Lux” from Spanish singer Rosalía, arrived in November, and it immediately reframed the debate about the potential album of the year.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

An independent review says Creative Scotland, the public body that supports the country's creative and cultural sector, needs to take greater risks and be more ambitious.

Read more on BBC

While China’s long-term AI goals are no less ambitious than the U.S. tech titans, its near-term priority is to shore up its role as the world’s factory floor for decades to come.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The wide scope of the album, both in subject and sound, made it an ambitious and unique among rock releases of the time, shedding the humble irony of the grunge movement for vulnerability and exploration.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He has an ambitious desire to see the state control of all public transport in Peru.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• arduous 
• bold 
• challenging 
• demanding 
• difficult 
• energetic 
• grandiose 
• impressive 
• visionary