entrepreneur

[ ahn-truh-pruh-nur, -noo r; French ahn-truh-pruh-nœr ]
/ ˌɑn trə prəˈnɜr, -ˈnʊər; French ɑ̃ trə prəˈnœr /

noun, plural en·tre·pre·neurs [ahn-truh-pruh-nurz, -noo rz; French ahn-truh-pruh-nœr] /ˌɑn trə prəˈnɜrz, -ˈnʊərz; French ɑ̃ trə prəˈnœr/.

a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.
an employer of productive labor; contractor.

verb (used with object)

to deal with or initiate as an entrepreneur.

verb (used without object)

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

OTHER WORDS FROM entrepreneur

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH entrepreneur

entrepreneur intrapreneur

Words nearby entrepreneur

entrecôte, entrelac, entremets, entrench, entrenchment, entrepreneur, entrepôt, entresol, entropion, entropion uveae, entropy
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for entrepreneurialism

entrepreneur
/ (ˌɒntrəprəˈnɜː, French ɑ̃trəprənœr) /

noun

the owner or manager of a business enterprise who, by risk and initiative, attempts to make profits
a middleman or commercial intermediary

Derived forms of entrepreneur

entrepreneurial, adjectiveentrepreneurship, noun

Word Origin for entrepreneur

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 Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for entrepreneurialism

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.

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.