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Which well-known company began as a venture-backed startup?

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venture

American  

[ven-cher] / ˈvɛn tʃər /

noun

• ventures
  plural

1. an undertaking involving uncertainty as to the outcome, especially a risky or dangerous one.

   a mountain-climbing venture.

2. a business enterprise or speculation in which something is risked in the hope of profit; a commercial or other speculation.

   Their newest venture allows you to order their products online.

3. the money, ship, cargo, merchandise, or the like, on which risk is taken in a business enterprise or speculation.

4. Obsolete. hazard or risk.

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verb (used with object)

• ventures,
  present (3rd person singular)
• ventured,
  past participle,  past
• venturing
  present participle

1. to expose to hazard; risk.

   to venture one's fortune;

   to venture one's life.

   Synonyms:

   jeopardize, imperil, endanger

2. to take the risk of; brave the dangers of.

   to venture a voyage into space.

3. to undertake to express, as when opposition or resistance appears likely to follow; be bold enough; dare.

   I venture to say that you are behaving foolishly.

4. to take the risk of sending.

verb (used without object)

• ventures,
  present (3rd person singular)
• ventured,
  past participle,  past
• venturing
  present participle

1. to make or embark upon a venture; dare to enter or go.

   He ventured deep into the jungle.

2. to take a risk; dare; presume.

   to venture on an ambitious program of reform.

3. to invest venture capital.

adjective

1. of or relating to an investment or investments in new businesses.

   a venture fund.

idioms

1. at a venture, according to chance; at random.

   A successor was chosen at a venture.

venture British  

/ ˈvɛntʃə /

verb

1. (tr) to expose to danger; hazard

   he ventured his life

2. (tr) to brave the dangers of (something)

   I'll venture the seas

3. (tr) to dare (to do something)

   does he venture to object?

4. (tr; may take a clause as object) to express in spite of possible refutation or criticism

   I venture that he is not that honest

5. (intr; often foll by out, forth, etc) to embark on a possibly hazardous journey, undertaking, etc

   to venture forth upon the high seas

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noun

1. an undertaking that is risky or of uncertain outcome

2. 1. a commercial undertaking characterized by risk of loss as well as opportunity for profit

   2. the merchandise, money, or other property placed at risk in such an undertaking

3. something hazarded or risked in an adventure; stake

4. archaic chance or fortune

5. at random; by chance

venture More Idioms  

1. see nothing ventured, nothing gained.

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Synonym Usage

See dare.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preventure
  noun
• venturer
  noun
• unventured
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• ventures
  plural

Participles

• venturing
  present
• ventured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• venture
  simple
• ventures
  simple
• have ventured
  perfect
• has ventured
  perfect
• am venturing
  progressive
• are venturing
  progressive
• is venturing
  progressive
• have been venturing
  perfect progressive
• has been venturing
  perfect progressive

Past

• ventured
  simple
• had ventured
  perfect
• was venturing
  progressive
• were venturing
  progressive
• had been venturing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will venture
  simple
• will have ventured
  perfect
• will be venturing
  progressive
• will have been venturing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of venture

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, shortened from aventure adventure

Explanation

A venture is a risky undertaking. If your latest venture is a dog food store, you hope there are some hungry dogs around. Also, to venture is to go somewhere possibly dangerous, like if you venture out into a snowstorm. Venture is a shortened form of adventure. This happened sometime between 1100 CE and 1400 CE during the time that Middle English was spoken. While the two words are similar in meaning, when you subtract the ad, you lose a teaspoon or two of fun, and add a heaping tablespoon of risk.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

venture ventures ventured venturing

At the time, Golden was trying to understand New York’s nascent venture capital scene.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

It’s back because the portfolio finally caught up to where the value is: across public markets, private equity, venture capital and real assets, anchored by a fixed-income allocation that pays you to wait.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026

Wondermind aimed to make mental health-related content more accessible through a digital platform, recruiting investors to back the venture.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

In 2009, he followed in Dr. Phil’s footsteps and launched his own talk show, with Winfrey’s production company backing the venture.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Nhamo was afraid, too, but she had a compelling reason to venture out alone.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Bloomberg reported that investigators are looking at some loans made to multiple companies affiliated with one Chicago firm to see if they were passed along to Walter’s ventures.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

Bill has been involved in multiple business ventures; he reluctantly told me that these include at least one other Trump store, in Gatlinburg—another former Cupid’s Outlet—as well as condos in Florida.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

Boeing announced an agreement Monday to divest its air taxi and two other technology ventures to Archer Aviation for a stake in the startup.

From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026

Some ventures have succeeded, however, most notably the Detroit Riverwalk, a miles-long promenade built in the 2000s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

As far back as 1885, Duke had discussed less ambitious joint ventures with some of the individuals in the room, but what he now suggested was on a different scale altogether.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

Some analysts have ventured to say that diminished demand could keep a lid on oil prices through the rest of the year, even if traffic through the Strait of Hormuz doesn’t fully recover.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026

Nasa astronauts Anil Menon and Jessica Meir ventured outside the International Space Station for a spacewalk on Thursday to install mounting hardware.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Only one panel I encountered, featuring action star Alan Ritchson of “Reacher,” ventured directly into politics.

From Salon ● Jul. 31, 2026

While people sometimes ventured onto the campus over the years, trespassing escalated last winter as social media videos “spread like wildfire,” said Supervisor Robert Scorrano, Somers’ elected chief executive.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026

They were alone in the deep sea where fishermen rarely ventured.

From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook

Founded in 1862 by Adam Opel, the company produced sewing machines and later bicycles, before venturing into car manufacturing in 1899 at its Ruesselsheim site.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

Footwear brand Cole Haan is venturing further into travel and lifestyle with its first collection of luggage.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Steve Heimlich spent roughly 40 years working at a California Department of Fish and Wildlife hatchery, frequently venturing into the Eastern High Sierra before he retired a decade ago.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

The sheer scale of the U.S. domestic market — with more than 300 million people — helped American companies scale their businesses before venturing abroad.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 28, 2026

I spent the first few weeks of the year on my epic swimming quest, venturing out into the lake in different directions.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo

Related Words

• deal
• endeavor
• enterprise
• experiment
• investment
• project
• undertaking