entrepreneur

American  

[ahn-truh-pruh-nur, -noor, ahn-truh-pruh-nœr] / ˌɑn trə prəˈnɜr, -ˈnʊər, ɑ̃ trə prəˈnœr /

noun

entrepreneurs plural

1. a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.

2. an employer of productive labor; contractor.

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verb (used with object)

1. to deal with or initiate as an entrepreneur.

verb (used without object)

1. to act as an entrepreneur.

entrepreneur British  

/ ˌɒntrəprəˈnɜː, ɑ̃trəprənœr /

noun

1. the owner or manager of a business enterprise who, by risk and initiative, attempts to make profits

2. a middleman or commercial intermediary

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entrepreneur Cultural  

1. One who starts a business or other venture that promises economic gain but that also entails risks.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• entrepreneurship
  noun
• entrepreneurial
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• entrepreneurs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of entrepreneur

First recorded in 1875–80; from French: literally, “one who undertakes (some task),” equivalent to entrepren(dre) “to undertake” (from Latin inter- inter- + prendere “to take,” variant of prehendere ) + -eur -eur; see enterprise

Explanation

An entrepreneur is someone who starts a new business. Little stores and huge companies both have entrepreneurs behind them. Do you have good ideas for products? Are you OK with the idea of risk? Then maybe you should be an entrepreneur. This is someone who founds a business, whether a tiny one or a huge one. Besides starting the business, the entrepreneur takes on the most of the risk by investing their own money and/or bringing in other investors. For an entrepreneur, their business is their baby.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

entrepreneur entrepreneurs

Von Hagens, an anatomist, lecturer and entrepreneur nicknamed "Dr Death," in the 1970s invented the plastination process, which involves removing water and fat from human and animal tissue and replacing them with chemical compounds.

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

In a wide-ranging interview, the entrepreneur also made typically outlandish predictions, such as claiming "money won't matter" in a decade.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

Kim is a celebrated entrepreneur with a personal wealth valued by Forbes at over $8.1 billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026

In the San Fernando Valley’s tight-knit Vietnamese community, Thien “Kim” Nguyen was known as a successful entrepreneur.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

Earlier, in July 1891, the exposition had granted a contract for the work to the Hygeia Mineral Springs Company, headed by an entrepreneur named J. E. McElroy, but the company had accomplished little.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

Among them were a former rural mayor, an ex-police commander, a bar owner, a rancher, a fireman and various entrepreneurs associated with mining and construction, industries heavily subject to extortion demands.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

"As a priority it is important for us to support the smallest and less protected entrepreneurs -- there are more than 88,000 of them," she said on Telegram this week.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

The AI data-center gold rush is drawing all types of entrepreneurs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

And while their own startup had flopped, the entrepreneurs were more confident than ever in their operational skills.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026

Unfortunately for the entrepreneurs, then came the Great Depression, and the commercial impulse withered.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

Related Words

• administrator
• contractor
• executive
• manager
• producer