Someone who is ambitious has a strong desire to be successful, rich, or powerful.
Chris is so ambitious, so determined to do it all.
He's a very ambitious lad and he wants to play at the highest level.
Synonyms: enterprising, spirited, keen, active More Synonyms of ambitious
2. adjective
An ambitious idea or plan is on a large scale and needs a lot of work to be carried out successfully.
The ambitious project was completed in only nine months.
Their goal was extraordinarily ambitious.
Synonyms: demanding, trying, hard, taxing More Synonyms of ambitious
ambitiouslygraded adverb [ADVERB with verb, ADVERB adjective]
Its trade and industrial policies should be used more ambitiously.
He is working on his life story, ambitiously planned as a 50-volume work.
ambitious in British English
(æmˈbɪʃəs)
adjective
1.
having a strong desire for success or achievement; wanting power, money, etc
2.
necessitating extraordinary effort or ability
an ambitious project
3. (often foll by of)
having a great desire (for something or to do something)
Derived forms
ambitiously (amˈbitiously)
adverb
ambitiousness (amˈbitiousness)
noun
ambitious in American English
(æmˈbɪʃəs)
adjective
1.
full of or showing ambition
2.
greatly desirous (of something); eager for
3.
demanding great effort, skill, enterprise, etc.
an ambitious undertaking
SYNONYMY NOTE: ambitious implies a striving for advancement, wealth, fame, etc., and is used with both favorableand unfavorable connotations; , aspiring suggests a striving to reach some lofty end regarded as somewhat beyond one's normalexpectations [an aspiring young poet]; enterprising implies an energetic readiness to take risks or undertake new projects in order tosucceed; , emulous suggests ambition characterized by a competitive desire to equal or surpass another
Derived forms
ambitiously (amˈbitiously)
adverb
Word origin
ME ambicious < L ambitiosus, seeking favor < ambitio: see ambition
Examples of 'ambitious' in a sentence
ambitious
And he has more ambitious plans if the second one goes well.
The Sun (2016)
The camp residents have ambitious plans.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
It's been a hugely ambitious project.
The Sun (2016)
An ambitious infrastructure project is also on the cards including 2.3 billion to improve rural roads.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
An ambitious family project may ask more of you than anyone else because you are the one with the most energy and ideas.
The Sun (2017)
This is a bold, ambitious plan to deliver the change we need.
The Sun (2017)
But the size of Villa as a club and the chance to be ambitious and do something positive was a big draw.
The Sun (2016)
Luck is building for an ambitious plan for a family reunion - it takes teamwork and you have a key role to play.
The Sun (2016)
The trust has ambitious plans to double in size; this will require further issue of equity but that dividend yield looks safe enough.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This is an ambitious and complex production of an ambitious and complex play.
The Times Literary Supplement (2014)
You are ready to set more ambitious goals for yourself.
The Sun (2013)
In time trouble this is extraordinarily ambitious.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Oxford has ambitious plans to expand summer schools.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
We have a lot of ambitious people here and our appraisal is designed to stretch and challenge.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The report called for an ambitious effort to rein in borrowing.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
She was trying something much more ambitious.
Diane Purkiss The English Civil War: A People's History (2006)
Their ambitious goal is to bring them close once more.
The Times Literary Supplement (2011)
And an ambitious cash plan deserves a closer look.
The Sun (2012)
Footballers like joining ambitious clubs because ambitious clubs have lots of money.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
He was now confident enough to attempt something far more ambitious.
Linda Colley The Ordeal of Elizabeth Marsh: A Woman in World History (2007)
Pluto inspires you to set ambitious goals.
The Sun (2012)
But the current project is a lot more ambitious.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
And you and your brother are clearly thinking of something far more ambitious.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
But ambitious plans to transform it into an important centre for exhibitions have failed to get off the ground.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
As an economy grows its population demands more personal insurance and more ambitious business projects need to insure against failure.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Mars inspires you to be ambitious, determined and one to watch at work.
The Sun (2011)
It's an ambitious project and not without its critics.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
The ambitious project is a great example of the investment needed if Britain is to remain competitive in the tourism business.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
The lecture is extraordinarily ambitious.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Behind Cummins's eccentric bonhomie is a determined and ambitious man.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
An ambitious style of play that enables them to play tight, wide or preferably a mixture of both is required - now.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
But it is the structure of the song that seems, still, so extraordinarily ambitious for a musician in his early twenties.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The English effort is less ambitious and has been made without any flourish of trumpets, but it is none the less real and admirable.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
In other languages
ambitious
British English: ambitious /æmˈbɪʃəs/ ADJECTIVE
Someone who is ambitious wants to be successful, rich, or powerful.
He is very ambitious.
American English: ambitious
Arabic: طَموح
Brazilian Portuguese: ambicioso
Chinese: 有雄心的
Croatian: ambiciozan
Czech: ctižádostivý
Danish: ambitiøs
Dutch: ambitieus
European Spanish: ambicioso
Finnish: kunnianhimoinen
French: ambitieux
German: ehrgeizig
Greek: φιλόδοξος
Italian: ambizioso
Japanese: 野心的な
Korean: 야심적인
Norwegian: ambisiøs
Polish: ambitny
European Portuguese: ambicioso
Romanian: ambițios
Russian: честолюбивый
Latin American Spanish: ambicioso
Swedish: ambitiös
Thai: ทะเยอทะยาน
Turkish: hırslı
Ukrainian: честолюбний
Vietnamese: nhiều tham vọng
Chinese translation of 'ambitious'
ambitious
(æmˈbɪʃəs)
adj
[person]雄心勃勃的 (xióngxīn bóbó de)
[idea, project]宏大的 (hóngdà de)
1 (adjective)
Definition
having a strong desire for success
He's a very ambitious lad.
Synonyms
enterprising
an enterprising and hard-working young woman
spirited
He wanted merely to provoke a spirited debate.
keen
a keen amateur photographer
active
We should play an active role in politics.
daring
eager
Robert was eager to talk about life in the Army.
intent
enthusiastic
The band drew a huge and enthusiastic crowd.
hopeful
striving
vigorous
The choir and orchestra gave a vigorous performance of Haydn's oratorio.
aspiring
an aspiring young artist
energetic
Two-year-olds can be incredibly energetic.
adventurous
He had always wanted an adventurous life in the tropics.
avid
an avid collector of art
zealous
She was a zealous worker for charitable bodies.
intrepid
resourceful
purposeful
desirous
Opposites
lazy
,
apathetic
,
unambitious
,
good-for-nothing
,
unaspiring
2 (adjective)
Definition
requiring great effort or ability
Their goal was extraordinarily ambitious.
Synonyms
demanding
It is a demanding job.
trying
The whole business has been very trying.
hard
Coping with three babies is very hard work.
taxing
You won't be asked to do anything too taxing.
difficult
It is difficult to read the sign from here.
challenging
tough
Whoever wins the election is going to have a tough job.
severe
He had faced an appallingly severe task in the jungle.
impressive
exhausting
She had set herself an exhausting schedule.
exacting
He was not well enough to carry out such an exacting task.
bold
Some young people may seem bold and confident, but inside they are very fragile.
elaborate
a designer known for his elaborate costumes
formidable
We have a formidable task ahead of us.
energetic
an energetic exercise routine
strenuous
Avoid strenuous exercise in the evening.
pretentious
He talked a lot of pretentious twaddle about modern art.
arduous
The task was more arduous than he had calculated.
grandiose
the grandiose building which housed the mayor's offices
industrious
Opposites
easy
,
simple
,
modest
,
unambitious
Additional synonyms
in the sense of active
Definition
energetically involved in or working hard for
We should play an active role in politics.
Synonyms
enthusiastic,
committed,
engaged,
enterprising,
devoted,
activist,
aggressive,
ambitious,
hard-working,
forward,
militant,
energetic,
assertive,
forceful,
two-fisted,
zealous,
industrious
in the sense of adventurous
Definition
daring or enterprising
He had always wanted an adventurous life in the tropics.