The enterprise meaning has three faces: a business or company, a bold or difficult project, and the energy and initiative to start new things. A family bakery is an enterprise; so is a plan to sail around the world; and the courage to try either is also called enterprise.
Office talk adds a fourth, newer use: a label for large organizations, as in enterprise software, enterprise clients, enterprise plans. Each sense below comes with its own examples, so the right one is easy to pick out.
Entry at a glance
Meaning
A business; an undertaking; initiativePart of speech
Noun (countable and uncountable); also used before nounsPronunciation
EN-ter-pryzWord forms
enterprises, enterprising (adjective), enterprisinglyOrigin
Old French entreprise, something undertaken, from entreprendre, to undertakeClose words
business, firm, venture, undertaking, initiativeRegister
Neutral to formal; very common in business and economics
What enterprise means: four senses
To define enterprise clearly, and give a fair definition of enterprise, take the senses one at a time:
- A business or organization. She runs a small enterprise selling handmade soap. Governments speak of state enterprises and public sector enterprises.
- An undertaking, especially a risky or ambitious one. Building the bridge in two years was a huge enterprise.
- Initiative and resourcefulness. The students showed real enterprise by organizing the fundraiser themselves. Here the word is uncountable.
- Business activity as a whole. Private enterprise and free enterprise refer to an economy where privately owned businesses compete.
A one line enterprise definition that covers most uses: an organized effort to make or achieve something, often with some risk.
Enterprise in sentences
- The village cooperative grew from a two person enterprise into a company with forty staff.
- Opening a cafe during a rail strike was a bold enterprise, but customers kept coming.
- The manager praised the intern's enterprise in fixing the booking system without being asked.
- Our team handles enterprise clients, so most deals involve contracts with large hospitals and universities.
- Climbing all three peaks in one weekend was a tiring enterprise for the hiking club.
Your teenage cousin notices that neighbors struggle to find someone to walk their dogs. He makes flyers, sets a fair rate and soon has six regular customers.
His dog walking service is a small enterprise, and the quality he showed in starting it, spotting a need and acting on it, is enterprise too.
Enterprise meaning in business and economics
In economics, enterprise is sometimes listed as a factor of production alongside land, labor and capital. Here it means the risk-taking and organizing that brings the other three together, the role usually played by an entrepreneur. Free enterprise describes a system where businesses operate with limited government control, a key idea in discussions of capitalism.
In India, official policy uses the term MSME, micro, small and medium enterprises, for smaller businesses that can qualify for certain support schemes, with categories set by investment and turnover limits. American usage leans on small business instead, while large companies are called enterprises or corporations.
In the technology trade, enterprise before a noun means made for big organizations: enterprise software, enterprise security, an enterprise plan with more users and support than a personal plan.
Where the word started
Enterprise came into English in the fifteenth century from Old French entreprise, meaning something undertaken. That noun grew out of entreprendre, to undertake, whose parts are entre (in between) and prendre (seize, grab), which goes back to Latin prehendere, to seize. The idea is of taking something in hand. The same French verb later gave English entrepreneur, a person who undertakes a business.
Enterprise, venture, endeavor: choosing well
| Word | Best for |
|---|---|
| enterprise | a business, or a large organized effort |
| venture | a new, risky business or project |
| endeavor | a serious attempt, often personal or noble |
| firm, company | a business, in plain terms |
| initiative | the drive to act first, close to sense 3 |
The adjective enterprising is always a compliment: an enterprising student is resourceful and willing to try new ideas. It links naturally with innovation.
Spelling and grammar traps
Enterprise ends in -ise in American, British and Indian English alike. Unlike organize or realize, there is no -ize form; enterprize is a misspelling. Do not confuse enterprise (the business) with entrepreneur (the person who starts it).
When you mean the quality of initiative, do not add an: she showed enterprise, not she showed an enterprise. When you mean a business, the article is natural: a social enterprise, a family enterprise. Other terms from offices and markets are listed among our business and money words.
Frequently asked questions
Put plainly, what is the meaning of enterprise?
Enterprise means a business, a big project, or the courage and drive to start something new. Context tells you which: a shop is an enterprise, and so is the spirit of the person who opened it.
What does enterprise mean in business?
It usually means a company or organization. Before another noun, as in enterprise software, it signals a product built for large organizations rather than individuals.
What is free enterprise?
Under free enterprise, privately owned firms choose what to make, how to sell it and what to charge, with limited government control. It is closely tied to market economies.
What does enterprising mean?
Enterprising is the adjective. It describes someone resourceful who spots chances and acts on them, like an enterprising student who starts a tutoring service.
How do you pronounce enterprise?
Say EN-ter-pryz. The last part rhymes with prize, and the strongest beat is on EN.
What is a social enterprise?
It is a business set up mainly to tackle a community or environmental need, for example recycling waste or hiring people who struggle to find work, while paying its way through sales.