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Definition of 'ambition'

Word Frequency

ambition

(æmbɪʃən )
Word forms: plural ambitions
1. countable noun [oft NOUN to-infinitive]
If you have an ambition to do or achieve something, you want very much to do it or achieve it.
His ambition is to sail round the world.
He harboured ambitions of becoming a Tory MP.
Synonyms: goal, end, hope, design   More Synonyms of ambition
2. uncountable noun
Ambition is the desire to be successful, rich, or powerful.
Even when I was young I never had any ambition.
...a mixture of ambition and ruthlessness.
Synonyms: enterprise, longing, drive, fire   More Synonyms of ambition
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers

Video: pronunciation of 'ambition'

Word Frequency

ambition in British

(æmˈbɪʃən )
noun
1. 
strong desire for success, achievement, or distinction
2. 
something so desired; goal; aim
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin of 'ambition'
C14: from Old French, from Latin ambitiō a going round (of candidates), a striving to please, from ambīre to go round; see ambit
Word Frequency

ambition in American

(æmˈbɪʃən ; ambishˈən)
noun
1. 
a strong desire to gain a particular objective; specif., the drive to succeed, or to gain fame, power, wealth, etc.
2. 
the objective strongly desired
verb transitive
3.  Rare
to be ambitious for
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin of 'ambition'
ME < OFr < L ambitio, a going around (to solicit votes) < pp. of ambire: see ambient

Example sentences containing 'ambition'

These examples have been automatically selected and may contain sensitive content. Read more…
You find a way to share responsibilities and free up time for a personal ambition. The Sun (2016)This is yet another example of political ambitions overcoming common sense. The Sun (2017)This could provide funds for each son and so fulfil one of his personal ambitions. Times, Sunday Times (2016)When he came out of the army he directed his ambition towards two goals : politics and making money. Times, Sunday Times (2017)A rare total eclipse of the moon will make your emotions a useful bit tougher and ambitions stronger. The Sun (2016)Either that or he should be left to fulfil his own ambition and run for president in 2020 in peace. Times, Sunday Times (2016)Saturn, planet of serious intentions, gives you the focus to learn an extra skill that will help you fulfil an ambition. The Sun (2016)Limits are always limits to some project or desire or ambition. Wood, David Philosophy at the Limit (1990)But you have to have ambitions and goals. Times, Sunday Times (2014)You are close to success with the ambition that means the most to you. The Sun (2013)You know which personal ambition you should focus on and which you should put on hold. The Sun (2014)It was thereby hoped to reduce the political ambitions of the armed forces. Paul Preston The Spanish Civil War: Reaction, Revolution and RevengeThis transformation is possible as long as we do not harbour ambitions to reform our partner. Times, Sunday Times (2011)Will new ambitions change your world of love? The Sun (2009)Your intuition and ambition both get stronger. The Sun (2014)Yet already she has hinted that she might revive her presidential ambitions. Times, Sunday Times (2008)Will ambition and success change your love future? The Sun (2013)Yet colleagues were impressed by his grasp of detail and seeming lack of personal ambition. Times, Sunday Times (2009)Her success in finding a way out of the legal impasse will boost her wider political ambitions. Times, Sunday Times (2013)Most writers harbour a modest ambition for their work to live on after their deaths. Times, Sunday Times (2006)Inspiring more of you to come into the business world is an ambition of mine. Times, Sunday Times (2011)The sun climbs to the top of your chart and ambitions get stronger. The Sun (2016)He insisted that the surgery had not been prompted by presidential ambitions. Times, Sunday Times (2013)Pluto and the sun are working on your behalf so you are ready to fulfil your personal ambitions. The Sun (2010)You handle relationships well and can be a close couple but also encourage each other to fulfil personal ambitions. The Sun (2009)Do the very best drivers step over the line because they cannot see anything other than their own desires and ambitions? Times, Sunday Times (2009)By that time, the papacy had established its territorial ambitions. Christianity Today (2000)They had desire and ambition, like it was the last chance of their lives. The Sun (2013)You stand out from the crowd, think fast and fulfil an ambition. The Sun (2009)

Quotations

Ambition is the growth of every climeWilliam Blake King Edward the Third
Well is it known that ambition can creep as well as soarEdmund Burke Letters on a Regicide Peace
Ambition, in a private man a vice,
Is in a prince the virtue
Philip Massinger The Bashful Lover
Ambition must be made to counteract ambitionJames Madison The Federalist Papers
Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what's a Heaven for?
Robert Browning Andrea del Sarto
The glorious fault of angels and godsAlexander Pope Elegy to the Memory of an Unfortunate Lady
Every eel hopes to become a whale

Trends of 'ambition'

In Common Usage. ambition is one of the 10000 most commonly used words in the Collins dictionary

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Translations for 'ambition'

British English: ambition /æmˈbɪʃən/ NOUN
If you have an ambition to achieve something, you want very much to achieve it.
His ambition is to sail round the world.
  • American English: ambition
  • Arabic: طُموح
  • Brazilian Portuguese: ambição
  • Chinese: 雄心
  • Croatian: ambicija
  • Czech: přání
  • Danish: ambition
  • Dutch: ambitie
  • European Spanish: ambición
  • Finnish: kunnianhimo
  • French: ambition
  • German: Ehrgeiz
  • Greek: φιλοδοξία
  • Italian: ambizione
  • Japanese: 野心
  • Korean: 야심
  • Norwegian: ærgjerrighet
  • Polish: ambicja
  • European Portuguese: ambição
  • Romanian: ambiție
  • Russian: цель
  • Spanish: ambición
  • Swedish: ambition
  • Thai: ความทะเยอทะยาน
  • Turkish: hırs
  • Ukrainian: мета
  • Vietnamese: tham vọng

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Nearby words of 'ambition'

  • ambisexuality
  • ambisonics
  • ambit
  • ambition
  • ambitioned
  • ambitionless
  • ambitious

  • All ENGLISH words that begin with 'A'

Source

Definition of ambition from the Collins English Dictionary

Prepositions

A preposition is one of a small but very common group of words that relate different items to each other. Most English prepositions have a number of meanings that are particular to each preposition. ...
Read more about 'Prepositions'
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Scrabble score for 'ambition': 12
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