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Intermediate Dictionary
     

am·bi·tious

ambitious

 
 
pronunciation:
aem bI shs
features:
Word History, Word Parts
part of speech: adjective
definition 1: having or showing a strong desire to succeed; having ambition.
She has the ambitious goal of becoming a doctor someday.
synonyms:
aspiring, determined, enterprising
antonyms:
lazy
similar words:
climbing, competitive, driving, eager, hungry, intent
definition 2: requiring great effort to be done successfully.
He has an ambitious plan to lose twenty pounds in two months.
synonyms:
difficult
antonyms:
easy
similar words:
bold, brave, daring, energetic, lofty
derivation: ambitiously (adv.)
Word History
The word ambitious is from a Latin word that means "to go about" or "walk around." In Roman times, this Latin word, ambitio, came to have a special meaning. It was used for a man who went around town for a particular reason: to persuade people to vote for him. Today, we would still say that someone who enters an election is ambitious, but the English word now has a wider meaning.
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