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

Recorded in collaboration with Mexican cumbia collective Turbo Sonidero and Grupo Jejeje’s Arrabalero, this is an LP that, much like Enya herself, is as ambitious as it is grounded. — Kiana Mickles, Pitchfork, 17 July 2026

That is an ambitious target, because Japan, to date, has conducted just two orbital launches in 2026. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 17 July 2026

To tell this ambitious story, Hiddleston called on his right-hand man from Loki, the aforementioned Wright. — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 16 July 2026

According to the newspaper, the couple wanted to lean into the idea that a single-story home in the countryside can be more architecturally ambitious than a standard bungalow. — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 16 July 2026