ambition

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See also: Ambition

English

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Etymology

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From Middle English ambicioun, from Old French ambition, from Latin ambitiō (ambition, a striving for favor, literally 'a going around', especially of candidates for office in Rome soliciting votes), from ambiō (I go around, solicit votes). See ambient, issue.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /æmˈbɪʃ.ən/
    • Audio (US):(file)

Noun

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ambition (countable and uncountable, plural ambitions)

  1. (uncountable, countable) Eager or inordinate desire for some object that confers distinction, as preferment, honor, superiority, political power, or fame; desire to distinguish one's self from other people.
    My daughter, Johanna, wants to be a firefighter very much. She has a lot of ambition.
  2. (countable) An object of an ardent desire.
    My ambition is to own a helicopter.
  3. A desire, as in (sense 1), for another person to achieve these things.
  4. (uncountable) A personal quality similar to motivation, not necessarily tied to a single goal.
  5. (obsolete) The act of going about to solicit or obtain an office, or any other object of desire; canvassing.

Derived terms

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Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Verb

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ambition (third-person singular simple present ambitions, present participle ambitioning, simple past and past participle ambitioned)

  1. To seek after ambitiously or eagerly; to covet.
    • 1746, C Turnbull, The Histories Of Marcus Junianus Justinus:
      Pausanias, ambitioning the sovereignty of Greece, bargains with Xerxes for his daughter in marriage.

Further reading

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Danish

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Noun

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ambition c

  1. ambition

Declension

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Further reading

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Finnish

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Noun

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ambition

  1. genitive singular of ambitio

French

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Etymology

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Learned borrowing from Latin ambitiōnem.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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ambition f (plural ambitions)

  1. ambition (feeling)

Derived terms

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Further reading

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Swedish

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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ambition c

  1. ambition

Declension

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References

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