private enterprise

American  

noun

1. free enterprise.

---

private enterprise British  

noun

1. economic activity undertaken by private individuals or organizations under private ownership Compare public enterprise

2. another name for capitalism

---

private enterprise Cultural  

1. Business carried on for profit and not owned by the government; also, the system that discourages public ownership of business; the same as free enterprise. (See private sector.)

---

Etymology

Origin of private enterprise

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

The regime made vague promises about increasing internet access, allowing limited forms of private enterprise, and cooperating on marine protection.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

He argues that this pressure is necessary to force regime change and a flowering of private enterprise.

From Salon • Apr. 11, 2026

“We think we are in a pretty good position to be a winner in the inferencing market, because Oracle is by far the world’s largest custodian of high-value private enterprise data.”

From MarketWatch • Dec. 9, 2025

Private credit isn’t a bubble—it is a response to regulatory change, market concentration, and the real capital needs of private enterprise.

From Barron's • Oct. 30, 2025

In June 1956, in the monthly journal Liberation, I pointed out that the charter endorsed private enterprise and would allow capitalism to flourish among Africans for the first time.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela