entrepreneur
[ahn-truh-pruh-nur, -noo r; French ahn-truh-pruh-nœr]
- a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.
- an employer of productive labor; contractor.
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- to deal with or initiate as an entrepreneur.
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- to act as an entrepreneur.
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Origin of entrepreneur
1875–80; < French: literally, one who undertakes (some task), equivalent to entrepren(dre) to undertake (< Latin inter- inter- + prendere to take, variant of prehendere) + -eur -eur. See enterprise
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
manager, executive, administrator, producer, contractor, undertaker, founder, backer, businessperson, promoter, industrialist, organizerExamples from the Web for entrepreneur
Contemporary Examples
The feisty airline is the brainchild of entrepreneur Tony Fernandes, a Malaysian of Indian descent who also is a British citizen.
Entrepreneur Vivek Wadhwa is a vocal proponent of gender diversity.
A brilliant Silicon Valley entrepreneur may have found a way to get dark money out of politics without changing any laws.
After 10 years, she decided to venture out on her own as an entrepreneur.
EatWith is the brainchild of Israeli entrepreneur Guy Michlin.
Historical Examples
The globality of human praxis is not a scenario invented by some entrepreneur.
The Civilization of IlliteracyMihai Nadin
But, as an entrepreneur, Mr. Smith was always ahead of his period.
The Magnificent MontezHorace Wyndham
The worker appears here as the absolute equal of the entrepreneur.
The Accumulation of CapitalRosa Luxemburg
The entrepreneur had conducted, the visitor here, there, and everywhere.
"We desire to have nothing to do with either," returned the entrepreneur.
entrepreneur
- the owner or manager of a business enterprise who, by risk and initiative, attempts to make profits
- a middleman or commercial intermediary
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Word Origin
C19: from French, from entreprendre to undertake; see enterprise
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for entrepreneur
n.
1828, "manager or promoter of a theatrical production," reborrowing of French entrepreneur "one who undertakes or manages," agent noun from Old French entreprendre "undertake" (see enterprise). The word first crossed the Channel late 15c. but did not stay. Meaning "business manager" is from 1852. Related: Entrepreneurship.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
entrepreneur
[(ahn-truh-pruh-nur, ahn-truh-pruh-noor)]
One who starts a business or other venture that promises economic gain but that also entails risks.
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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.