undertaking

American  

[uhn-der-tey-king, uhn-der-tey-, uhn-der-tey-king] / ˌʌn dərˈteɪ kɪŋ, ˈʌn dərˌteɪ-, ˈʌn dərˌteɪ kɪŋ /

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.

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undertaking British  

/ 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

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Etymology

Origin of undertaking

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.

From 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.

From 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.

From 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.

From 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.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

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