private enterprise

noun

1. free enterprise ( def 1 ).

private enterprise

noun

1. economic activity undertaken by private individuals or organizations under private ownership Compare public enterprise
2. another name for capitalism

private enterprise

1. Business carried on for profit and not owned by the government; also, the system that discourages public ownership of business; the same as free enterprise . ( See private sector .)

Word History and Origins

Origin of private enterprise¹

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

The NorthJersey.com report details other private-enterprise plans being considered for the sought-after land, including a marina.

From Golf Digest

The Magic Johnson Theaters, which started in Los Angeles with the 1995 opening of the Magic Johnson Crenshaw 15, was a private-enterprise urban experiment in partnership with major conglomerates that saw mixed results.

From Los Angeles Times

Discussing the economic meaning of ecology, he argued that the private-enterprise system had serious flaws.

From Nature

Its private-enterprise advisory council is dominated by executives from such unloved industries as coal, oil, tobacco and drugs.

From Economist

Ms. Foot countered this “private-enterprise theory,” as she called it, by arguing the interconnectedness of facts and moral interpretations.

From New York Times