Ambitious
having ; eagerly desirous of achieving or obtaining success, power, wealth, a specific goal, etc.:
ambitious students.
showing or caused by ambition or an earnest desire for achievement or distinction:
an ambitious attempt to break the record for number of wins in a single season.
strongly desirous; eager:
ambitious of love and approval.
requiring exceptional effort, ability, etc.:
The candidate is proposing an ambitious program for eliminating all slums.
Contemporary Examples
To achieve these ambitious goals, more and more of the task of flying is being handed over to computers.
2010’s Unsafe Skies Clive Irving December 29, 2010
They consider Leno ambitious, ego-driven, but a respectable guy who was put in an untenable position.
Comedians Laugh as Leno Sinks Gina Piccalo October 23, 2010
They may be honorable men, and they may be courageous men, but the most ambitious and powerful generals are warriors above all.
Generals Can’t Be Trusted Lee Siegel October 30, 2009
She was ambitious and restless and sought out the high life and the limelight.
Eleanor Mondale’s Zest for Life Sandra McElwaine September 19, 2011
He begins by dismissing those critics who say his ideas are “too ambitious.”
9 Key Moments from Obama’s Speech The Daily Beast Video January 27, 2010
Historical Examples
Hatto is said to have been ambitious, heartless, and perfidious, as well as cruel towards the poor.
Legends of the Rhine Wilhelm Ruland
The waiting, the loneliness and the suspense were terrible to one so young, and so ambitious.
The Rock of Chickamauga Joseph A. Altsheler
“Becket” is the best and most ambitious of them, though not, as “Queen Mary” is, a play designed for the stage.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume XIII John Lord
It was the Infant of Spain that stood in the chamber of his ambitious minion.
Calderon The Courtier Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Warkworth would marry Aileen Moffatt, and use her money for an ambitious career.
Lady Rose’s Daughter Mrs. Humphry Ward
adjective
having a strong desire for success or achievement; wanting power, money, etc
necessitating extraordinary effort or ability: an ambitious project
(often foll by of) having a great desire (for something or to do something)
adj.
late 14c., from Latin ambitiosus “going around to canvass for office,” from ambitio (see ambition). Related: Ambitiously.
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having ; eagerly desirous of achieving or obtaining success, power, wealth, a specific goal, etc.: ambitious students. showing or caused by ambition or an earnest desire for achievement or distinction: an ambitious attempt to break the record for number of wins in a single season. strongly desirous; eager: ambitious of love and approval. requiring exceptional […]
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uncertainty or fluctuation, especially when caused by inability to make a choice or by a simultaneous desire to say or do two opposite or conflicting things. Psychology. the coexistence within an individual of positive and negative feelings toward the same person, object, or action, simultaneously drawing him or her in opposite directions. Historical Examples What […]
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