enterprising

[ en-ter-prahy-zing ]

adjective

1. ready to undertake projects of importance or difficulty, or untried schemes; energetic in carrying out any undertaking:

   Business is in need of enterprising young people.

   Synonyms: adventurous, resourceful, venturesome, venturous

   Antonyms: cautious, timid

2. characterized by great imagination or initiative:

   an enterprising foreign policy.

enterprising

/ ˈɛntəˌpraɪzɪŋ /

adjective

1. ready to embark on new ventures; full of boldness and initiative

Derived Forms

• ˈenterˌprisingly, adverb

Other Words From

• enter·prising·ly adverb
• non·enter·prising adjective
• un·enter·prising adjective
• un·enter·prising·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of enterprising¹

First recorded in 1565–75; enterprise + -ing ²

Synonym Study

See ambitious.

Example Sentences

Then the game happened - and it did not play out with the ferocity and enterprising rugby with which this fixture has become synonymous in recent years.

From BBC

But when Australian foodies sunk their teeth into the treats, outrage spread like wildfire after it became clear they were eating days-old goods, sold by a few enterprising locals - with no connection to Crumbl - who had brought the cookies back in suitcases from Hawaii.

From BBC

Dunkle’s biography is informed by this injustice, but doesn’t dwell exclusively on it, revealing Babb as a brilliant and enterprising Western author in her own right.

From Los Angeles Times

But the popular appetite for its basic concept left room for other enterprising gamblers to give something like it a better shot, especially after the Supreme Court legalized sports betting nationwide in 2018.

From Slate

It is staggering to imagine that anyone who has a large, non-short-selling stake in Trump Media would ever have any desire to hurt Donald Trump, but maybe an enterprising class-action attorney would like to take a shot.

From Slate

Related Words

• adventurous
• ambitious
• aspiring
• daring
• dashing
• diligent
• hardworking
• industrious
• intrepid