Synonyms of ambitious

ambitious

adjective

am-ˈbi-shəs 

1

as in aspiring

having a strong desire for personal advancement

an ambitious child actor and his even more ambitious mother, who will do anything to get him in commercials

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

2

as in aggressive

having or showing a bold forcefulness in the pursuit of a goal

cleaning up the vacant lot in one weekend was an ambitious undertaking

Synonyms & Similar Words

• aggressive
• adventurous
• fierce
• enterprising
• vigorous
• militant
• energetic
• assertive
• confident
• high-pressure
• in-your-face
• daring
• pushy
• go-getting
• self-assertive
• bold
• dynamic
• overambitious
• warlike
• pugnacious
• belligerent
• combative
• bellicose
• contentious
• self-asserting
• strenuous
• determined
• quarrelsome
• truculent
• adventuresome
• emphatic
• audacious
• impudent
• argumentative
• venturous
• gutsy
• hustling
• disputatious
• domineering
• venturesome
• gladiatorial
• bumptious
• insolent
• feisty
• cocky
• cheeky
• obtrusive
• trigger-happy
• unapologetic
• overconfident
• hyperaggressive
• brassy
• emboldened
• dashing
• presumptuous
• gung ho
• discordant
• brash
• scrappy
• cocksure
• overbearing
• forward
• dominating
• unyielding
• magisterial
• imperious
• unsubdued
• bare-knuckle
• lordly

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unambitious
• low-pressure
• unassertive
• unaggressive
• easygoing
• relaxed
• nonassertive
• amenable
• compliant
• docile
• tractable
• ambitionless
• deferential
• submissive
• unenterprising
• modest
• timid
• passive
• acquiescent
• humble
• mild
• yielding
• resigned
• quiet
• shrinking
• shy
• laid-back
• subdued
• meek
• unobtrusive
• bashful
• diffident
• lowly
• reserved
• retiring
• servile
• mousy
• demure
• obsequious
• subservient
• slavish
• cringing
• groveling
• overmodest
• cowering

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ambitious

The early trailer rapidly gained more than 90 million views on YouTube, galvanized by people awed by the apparent scale and emotional depth of Laika’s most ambitious film yet. — ABC News, 3 Sep. 2026

Hull were the most ambitious, with Bailey preferring to keep his family in England, as The Athletic reported in July. — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026

That project documents a show that has become one of Byrne’s most ambitious live productions, with 13 musicians, singers and dancers moving through a constantly shifting blend of choreography, visual art, storytelling and music. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 2 Sep. 2026

First steps toward regulated space manufacturing Perhaps the more ambitious part of the October campaign is regulatory. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2026