undertaking

[uhn-der-tey-king, uhn-der-tey-, uhn-der-tey-king]

noun

1. the act of a person who undertakes any task or responsibility.

2. a task, enterprise, etc., undertaken.

   Synonyms: venture, effort, job, endeavor, project

3. a promise; pledge; guarantee.

4. the business of an undertaker or funeral director.

undertaking

/ ˈʌndəˌteɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. something undertaken; task, venture, or enterprise

2. an agreement to do something

3. the business of an undertaker

4. informal,  the practice of overtaking on an inner lane a vehicle which is travelling in an outer lane

Word History and Origins

Origin of undertaking¹

Middle English word dating back to 1325–75; under, taking

Example Sentences

Rachel Reeves said the government would be undertaking "additional enforcement activity on High Streets, focusing on illicit tobacco and vaping products", which would involve deploying 350 newly-recruited criminal investigators part of the fraud investigation team.

Read more on BBC

Li Auto is undertaking a strategic reset amid slowing sales by planning faster product launches and renewing its overseas push, say analysts Ken Lee and Bella Lu in a note.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But undertaking a comprehensive renovation — to remove wood decks, install noncombustible siding and roofing, replace windows with multipaned tempered glass, hardscape the land near the house and trim down trees — is expensive.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But cleaning a house that size was a massive undertaking, and it seemed impossible to keep track of everyone’s belongings, as compared with when they lived in a smaller duplex.

Read more on MarketWatch

But cleaning a house that size was a massive undertaking, and it seemed impossible to keep track of everyone’s belongings, as compared with when they lived in a smaller duplex.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• affair 
• effort 
• enterprise 
• experiment 
• operation 
• project 
• proposition 
• task 
• venture