entrepreneur
noun
Did you know?
The Characteristics of an Entrepreneur
You might well wonder whether entrepreneur simply means “a person who starts a business and is willing to risk loss in order to make money” or whether it carries an additional connotation of far-sightedness and innovation. The answer, perhaps unsatisfyingly, is that it can go in either direction.
Entrepreneur has been used in English to refer to a kind of businessman since at least the middle of the 18th century, when it appeared in translation of the King of Prussia’s instructions for his generals (“. . . if the country happens not to abound in forage, you must agree with some Entrepreneur for the quantity required.”). During the 19th century, it was also used of a go-between or a person who undertakes any kind of activity (as opposed to just a business).
By the early 20th century entrepreneur appears to have taken on the connotation of go-getter when applied to an independent business owner, a quality that may also be found in the phrase entrepreneurial spirit, which began being used at about the same time.
Examples of entrepreneur in a Sentence
Charles Singh, USA Today, 9 May 2025
Fred Goldring is an entrepreneur, entertainment lawyer and co-founder of Pressing Business, a vinyl record and CD manufacturer, and record labels Flatiron Recordings and Label 51.
—Fred Goldring, Billboard, 9 May 2025
This year, the firm launched a 12-day private-jet journey that will introduce travelers to women chefs, vintners, and entrepreneurs
across Europe.
—Lori Rackl, Travel + Leisure, 8 May 2025
Means is a physician turned entrepreneur who earned her undergraduate and medical degrees at Stanford University.
—Jasmine Laws, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for entrepreneur
Cite this Entry
“Entrepreneur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/entrepreneur. Accessed 19 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
entrepreneur
noun
Share