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enter

[en-ter]
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verb (used without object)
  1. to come or go in: Knock before you enter.
  2. to be admitted into a school, competition, etc.: Some contestants enter as late as a day before the race.
  3. to make a beginning (often followed by on or upon): We have entered upon a new phase in history.
  4. Theater. to come upon the stage (used in stage directions as the 3rd person imperative singular or plural): Enter Othello, and Iago at a distance.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to come or go into: He just entered the building. The thought never entered my mind.
  2. to penetrate or pierce: The bullet entered the flesh.
  3. to put in or insert.
  4. to become a member of; join: to enter a club.
  5. to cause to be admitted, as into a school, competition, etc.: to enter a horse in a race.
  6. to make a beginning of or in, or begin upon; engage or become involved in: He entered the medical profession.
  7. to share in; have an intuitive understanding of: In order to appreciate the novel, one must be able to enter the spirit of the work.
  8. to make a record of; record or register: to enter a new word in a dictionary.
  9. Law.
    1. to make a formal record of (a fact).
    2. to occupy or to take possession of (lands); make an entrance, entry, ingress in, under claim of a right to possession.
    3. to file an application for (public lands).
  10. Computers. to put (a document, program, data, etc.) into a computer system: Enter your new document into the word-processing system.
  11. to put forward, submit, or register formally: to enter an objection to a proposed action; to enter a bid for a contract.
  12. to report (a ship, cargo, etc.) at the custom house.
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Verb Phrases
  1. enter into,
    1. to participate in; engage in.
    2. to investigate; consider: We will enter into the question of inherited characteristics at a future time.
    3. to sympathize with; share in.
    4. to form a constituent part or ingredient of: There is another factor that enters into the situation.
    5. to go into a particular state: to enter into a state of suspended animation.
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Origin of enter

1200–50; Middle English entren < Old French entrer < Latin intrāre to enter, derivative of intrā within
Related formsen·ter·a·ble, adjectiveen·ter·er, nounpre·en·ter, verb (used without object)un·en·ter·a·ble, adjectiveun·en·tered, adjectivewell-en·tered, adjective
Can be confusedenter inter

Antonyms

1. leave. 7. remove.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

joinparticipate
British Dictionary definitions for enter into

enter into

verb (intr, preposition)
  1. to be considered as a necessary part of (one's plans, calculations, etc)
  2. to be in sympathy withhe enters into his patient's problems
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enter

verb
  1. to come or go into (a place, house, etc)
  2. to penetrate or pierce
  3. (tr) to introduce or insert
  4. to join (a party, organization, etc)
  5. (when intr, foll by into) to become involved or take part (in)to enter a game; to enter into an agreement
  6. (tr) to record (an item such as a commercial transaction) in a journal, account, register, etc
  7. (tr) to record (a name, etc) on a list
  8. (tr) to present or submitto enter a proposal
  9. (intr) theatre to come on stage: used as a stage directionenter Juliet
  10. (when intr, often foll by into, on, or upon) to begin; startto enter upon a new career
  11. (intr often foll by upon) to come into possession (of)
  12. (tr) to place (evidence, a plea, etc) before a court of law or upon the court records
  13. (tr) law
    1. to go onto and occupy (land)
    2. mainly USto file a claim to (public lands)
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Derived Formsenterable, adjectiveenterer, noun

Word Origin

C13: from Old French entrer, from Latin intrāre to go in, from intrā within
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for enter into

enter

v.

late 13c., from Old French entrer, from Latin intrare "to go into, enter" (source of Spanish entrar, Italian entrare), from intra "within," related to inter (prep., adj.) "among, between" (see inter-). Related: Entered; entering.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with enter into

enter into

1

Participate in, take an active role or interest in, as in We had to think twice before we entered into these negotiations. [Late 1700s]

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2

Become party to (a contract), bind oneself, as in The nations entered into a new agreement. [First half of 1500s]

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3

Become a component, form a part of, as in Finances soon entered into the discussion. [Early 1700s]

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4

Also, go into. Consider, investigate, as in The report entered into the effect of high interest rates, or Let's not go into that. [Mid-1500s]

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.