undertaking
[uhn-der-tey-king, uhn-der-tey- for 1–3; uhn-der-tey-king for 4]
- the act of a person who undertakes any task or responsibility.
- a task, enterprise, etc., undertaken.
- a promise; pledge; guarantee.
- the business of an undertaker or funeral director.
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Origin of undertaking
Synonyms
See more synonyms for undertaking on Thesaurus.com2. project, endeavor, job, effort, venture.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for undertakings
Historical Examples
Does the human labour-force which carries on their undertakings belong to them?
FreelandTheodor Hertzka
But all that will finish soon, for all undertakings come to an end.
The Memoirs of Madame de Montespan, CompleteMadame La Marquise De Montespan
Any one of her undertakings was sufficient for one woman, but she compassed them all.
Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, CompleteAlbert Bigelow Paine
The undertakings of a contract may be for the existence of a fact in the present or in the future.
The Common LawOliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Some he makes sick, while others he causes to be unfortunate in their undertakings.
Short Sketches from Oldest AmericaJohn Driggs
undertaking
- something undertaken; task, venture, or enterprise
- an agreement to do something
- the business of an undertaker
- informal the practice of overtaking on an inner lane a vehicle which is travelling in an outer lane
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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
Word Origin and History for undertakings
undertaking
n.
"enterprise," early 15c., verbal noun from undertake (v.).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper