undertake

American  

[uhn-der-teyk] / ˌʌn dərˈteɪk /

verb (used with object)

• undertakes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• undertook,
  past
• undertaken,
  past participle
• undertaking
  present participle

1. to take upon oneself, as a task, performance, etc.; attempt.

   She undertook the job of answering all the mail.

2. to promise, agree, or obligate oneself (followed by an infinitive).

   The married couple undertook to love, honor, and cherish each other.

3. to warrant or guarantee (followed by a clause).

   The sponsors undertake that their candidate meets all the requirements.

4. to take in charge; assume the duty of attending to.

   The lawyer undertook a new case.

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verb (used without object)

• undertakes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• undertook,
  past
• undertaken,
  past participle
• undertaking
  present participle

1. Archaic. to engage oneself by promise; give a guarantee, or become surety.

undertake British  

/ ˌʌndəˈteɪk /

verb

1. (tr) to contract to or commit oneself to (something) or (to do something)

   to undertake a job

   to undertake to deliver the goods

2. (tr) to attempt to; agree to start

3. (tr) to take (someone) in charge

4. archaic to make oneself responsible (for)

5. (tr) to promise

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preundertake
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Participles

• undertaking
  present
• undertaken
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• undertake
  simple
• undertakes
  simple
• have undertaken
  perfect
• has undertaken
  perfect
• am undertaking
  progressive
• are undertaking
  progressive
• is undertaking
  progressive
• have been undertaking
  perfect progressive
• has been undertaking
  perfect progressive

Past

• undertook
  simple
• had undertaken
  perfect
• was undertaking
  progressive
• were undertaking
  progressive
• had been undertaking
  perfect progressive

Future

• will undertake
  simple
• will have undertaken
  perfect
• will be undertaking
  progressive
• will have been undertaking
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of undertake

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English undertaken; see under-, take

Explanation

When you undertake a task or challenge, you attempt to accomplish it. If you want to undertake a verbal challenge right now, try saying “sushi chef” ten times quickly without messing up. Way back in the 13th century, undertake meant “seize” or “entrap.” Of course, the meaning has shifted significantly since then, and we hope you don’t feel entrapped when you decide to undertake a project. However, undertake does convey a level of commitment and involvement that’s somewhat stronger than the words try or attempt might suggest.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

undertake undertakes undertook undertaken undertaking

If a new queen survives until her first brood emerges as adult workers, though, then the odds are in her favour as she no longer needs to undertake risky foraging.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026

Now that they are back in Britain, there have been some concerns over whether lines might be blurred as the couple undertake charity and other events that might look to the public like royal events.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

The ChatGPT-maker said on Tuesday, external that by focusing a group of roughly 10,000 AI agents, or AI bots that undertake tasks somewhat autonomously, it solved a notoriously difficult maths problem in just 88 hours.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

We’ve watched celebrities undertake this shape-shifting toward pillowy lips, smooth foreheads, high cheekbones.

From Slate ● Sep. 2, 2026

Nathan Hale then spoke up: “I will undertake it.”

From "George Washington, Spymaster" by Thomas B. Allen

In the memorandum of understanding, the United States undertakes to "terminate all types of sanctions against" Iran, and to "make fully available for use the frozen or restricted funds and assets" of Iran.

From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026

The eleventh point of the document notes that the US "undertakes to make fully available frozen or restricted funds" once the MoU is signed and that procedures will be agreed upon during negotiations.

From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026

Every night, he reads murder mysteries to them, a ritual he undertakes primarily for his own pleasure.

From Salon ● May 17, 2026

Then last week, the DOJ said it was closing the investigation as the Fed’s inspector general undertakes an inquiry into the renovations — though the Justice Department left open the possibility of restarting its probe.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 29, 2026

Whatever he undertakes, he commits himself to it fully, absolutely.

From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey

TOKYO—Japan spent a record $98.7 billion to prop up the yen in the past month, as it undertook rare coordinated action with the U.S. to stabilize the currency.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

"We undertook this study to determine if vanillin, a flavor chemical often used in e-cigarettes at high concentrations, could adversely affect the development of young embryos in humans."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

And then in 2017 Disney undertook its biggest ESPN-funded challenge yet, spending many billions to construct a streaming service to directly challenge Netflix—the company’s biggest strategic bet of the decade.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

In the video individuals are seen from afar putting their hands into the water while workers undertook cleaning work, but it did not clearly show people damaging the pool or depositing anything into it.

From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026

As soon as Winnie was up and about, I undertook the task of teaching the new mother of the household how to drive.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

"The charitable work of the duke and duchess is a personal matter for them both and undertaken in their private capacity. In short, their position is akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests."

From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026

Aled Jones-Griffith, CEO of Grŵp Llandrillo Menai, said there had been a "significant growth" in the number of young people who had undertaken construction.

From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026

Thousands of Indians are reported to have undertaken the pilgrimage this year, as well as Hindus from other nations.

From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026

They have undertaken charity work and recently conducted a number of pseudo-royal tours, including of Jordan and Australia, where they carried out public engagements.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

He tried to turn his thoughts from Hen Wen; reaching Caer Dathyl was the task he had undertaken and that in itself would be difficult enough.

From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander

“Student housing is a new undertaking for LACCD, and the District is learning from each step of this work,” Hidalgo said in an email.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

"Being able to put this new community supermarket in the heart of Chatham... is fantastic and will undoubtedly support the wider work we are undertaking," she said.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

It was a big undertaking as the company's energy needs are "quite large", amounting to more than 25 gigawatt-hours a year, most of it for refrigeration.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

The Takaichi administration is undertaking a major update of the national defence strategy this year in the face of China's expanding military ambitions.

From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026

But he said he would refer it to his staff for study to see if it was worth undertaking a year from then.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Related Words

• begin
• commence
• guarantee
• initiate
• launch
• offer
• shoulder
• tackle
• try