enterprising
Americanadjective
-
ready to undertake projects of importance or difficulty, or untried schemes; energetic in carrying out any undertaking.
Business is in need of enterprising young people.
- Synonyms:
- adventurous, resourceful, venturesome, venturous
-
characterized by great imagination or initiative.
an enterprising foreign policy.
adjective
Related Words
See ambitious.
Other Word Forms
- enterprisingly adverb
- nonenterprising adjective
- unenterprising adjective
- unenterprisingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of enterprising
First recorded in 1565–75; enterprise + -ing 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It is symbolic of your enterprising younger self, and all of those fancy cars and five-star vacations that you passed up on, perhaps using that money as a down payment on your next property instead.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026
Not since “Cats” has there been a more misguided yet enterprising work of big-budget, intellectual property cinema.
From Salon • Mar. 8, 2026
The Northampton back row was included in the starting XV for the first time after seven enterprising cameos as a replacement.
From BBC • Feb. 24, 2026
Jordan Firstman plays Charlie, an enterprising celebrity stylist.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 24, 2025
Originally destined for the lab’s finance department, enterprising researchers soon appropriated the machines for their own purposes.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
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.
