ambitious

am·bi·tious

adjective \am-ˈbi-shəs\

Definition of AMBITIOUS

1

a : having or controlled by ambition <an ambitious young executive>

b : having a desire to achieve a particular goal : aspiring <ambitious for power>

2

: resulting from, characterized by, or showing ambition <an ambitious film>

— am·bi·tious·ly adverb

— am·bi·tious·ness noun

Examples of AMBITIOUS

1. The company was created by two very ambitious young men in the early 1900s.
2. This 500-page book is her most ambitious effort yet.
3. Your plans for the future are very ambitious.
4. It was too ambitious a task for just one person.

First Known Use of AMBITIOUS

14th century

Related to AMBITIOUS

Synonyms

aspiring, go-getting, hard-driving, pushing, self-seeking

Antonyms

ambitionless, unambitious

Related Words

determined, diligent, driving, dynamic, enterprising, gung ho, hungry, hustling, industrious, motivated, scrappy, venturesome, venturous; animated, lively, spirited; ardent, avid, eager, energetic, impassioned, keen, raring, vigorous; aggressive, assertive, high-flying, opportunistic, overambitious, pretentious, pushy, self-assertive; competing, competitive, rival, rivalrous

Near Antonyms

apathetic, disinterested, indifferent, uneager, unenthusiastic, unexcited, uninterested; casual, easygoing, lackadaisical, lazyish; halfhearted, lukewarm, tepid; lazy, lethargic, listless, shiftless, sluggish, spiritless; unaggressive, unassertive

Rhymes with AMBITIOUS

auspicious, capricious, delicious, factitious, fictitious, flagitious, judicious, lubricious, malicious, nutritious, officious, pernicious, propitious, pumiceous, seditious, sericeous, suspicious