enter

¹

[ en-ter ]

verb (used without object)

1. to come or go in:

   Knock before you enter.

   Antonyms: leave

2. to be admitted into a school, competition, etc.:

   Some contestants enter as late as a day before the race.

3. to make a beginning (often followed by on or upon ):

   We have entered upon a new phase in history.

4. Theater. to come upon the stage (used in stage directions as the 3rd person imperative singular or plural):

   Enter Othello, and Iago at a distance.

verb (used with object)

1. to come or go into:

   He just entered the building. The thought never entered my mind.

2. to penetrate or pierce:

   The bullet entered the flesh.

3. to put in or insert.

   Antonyms: remove

4. to become a member of; join:

   to enter a club.

5. to cause to be admitted, as into a school, competition, etc.:

   to enter a horse in a race.

6. to make a beginning of or in, or begin upon; engage or become involved in:

   He entered the medical profession.

7. to share in; have an intuitive understanding of:

   In order to appreciate the novel, one must be able to enter the spirit of the work.

8. to make a record of; record or register:

   to enter a new word in a dictionary.

9. Law.
   1. to make a formal record of (a fact).
   2. to occupy or to take possession of (lands); make an entrance, entry, ingress in, under claim of a right to possession.
   3. to file an application for (public lands).
10. Computers. to put (a document, program, data, etc.) into a computer system:

    Enter your new document into the word-processing system.

11. to put forward, submit, or register formally:

    to enter an objection to a proposed action; to enter a bid for a contract.

12. to report (a ship, cargo, etc.) at the custom house.

verb phrase

1. 1. to participate in; engage in.
   2. to investigate; consider:

      We will enter into the question of inherited characteristics at a future time.

   3. to sympathize with; share in.
   4. to form a constituent part or ingredient of:

      There is another factor that enters into the situation.

   5. to go into a particular state:

      to enter into a state of suspended animation.

enter-

²

1. variant of entero- before a vowel:

   enteritis.

enter

/ ˈɛntə /

verb

1. to come or go into (a place, house, etc)
2. to penetrate or pierce
3. tr to introduce or insert
4. to join (a party, organization, etc)
5. whenintr, foll by into to become involved or take part (in)

   to enter into an agreement

   to enter a game

6. tr to record (an item such as a commercial transaction) in a journal, account, register, etc
7. tr to record (a name, etc) on a list
8. tr to present or submit

   to enter a proposal

9. intr theatre to come on stage: used as a stage direction

   enter Juliet

10. whenintr, often foll by into, on, or upon to begin; start

    to enter upon a new career

11. introften foll byupon to come into possession (of)
12. tr to place (evidence, a plea, etc) before a court of law or upon the court records
13. tr law
    1. to go onto and occupy (land)
    2. to file a claim to (public lands)

Derived Forms

• ˈenterable, adjective
• ˈenterer, noun

Other Words From

• enter·a·ble adjective
• enter·er noun
• pre·enter verb (used without object)
• un·enter·a·ble adjective
• un·entered adjective
• well-entered adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of enter¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English entren, from Old French entrer, from Latin intrāre “to enter,” from intrā intra- ( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of enter¹

C13: from Old French entrer, from Latin intrāre to go in, from intrā within

Example Sentences

The estimated number of people entering and exiting the station from March 2023/24 was 94.5 million, said the Office of Rail and Road.

From BBC

Both left school with few qualifications and worked their way up through the union movement, before entering politics.

From BBC

And yet this had been a fraught process for Lau-Lavie, an Israel-born gay man who just a few years before entering New York’s Jewish Theological Seminary had been a pillar of a “God-optional” community.

From New York Times

Experts said he will be reluctant to enter an all-out conflagration in the region.

From Los Angeles Times

“I entered this race not as a politician, but as a dad who couldn’t explain to my kids what they were seeing on our streets,” Lurie said.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• arrive
• come in
• get in
• go in
• infiltrate
• introduce
• invade
• penetrate