Meaning & use
ambition
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
A strong desire to achieve success, power, fame, or a chosen goal.
Grammar: Uncountable names the general drive; countable names a particular goal: 'political ambition' vs 'her ambitions.'
Patterns
- have ambition
- burning/lifelong ambition
- ambition to do something
- political/professional ambition
Her ambition is to become a pediatric surgeon.
He moved to the city with great ambition and little money.
The plan revealed the company's wider ambitions.
noununcountabledisapproving
A strong desire for personal success that may seem excessive or ignore other people.
Grammar: Often appears with words such as naked, ruthless, or personal to show disapproval: 'blind ambition.'
Patterns
- naked ambition
- personal ambition
- driven by ambition
Some voters distrusted his naked ambition.
The scandal was driven more by personal ambition than public service.
Word forms
| plural | ambitions |
|---|
Common combinations
- have ambition
- You need talent, but you also need ambition.
- achieve/fulfil an ambition
- Winning the regional title fulfilled a childhood ambition.
- driving ambition
- Her driving ambition kept her studying late.
- ambition to do something
- His ambition to lead the team was clear.
- lack ambition
- The report said the project lacked ambition.
Synonyms and how they differ
- drive
- Drive emphasizes steady internal energy; ambition often points toward a goal such as success or promotion.
- aspiration
- Aspiration is more positive and idealistic, while ambition can be neutral, admirable, or selfish.
- goal
- A goal is the target itself; ambition is the strong desire or effort aimed at reaching targets.
Opposites
Word family
- ambitious adjective
- Having or showing strong desire to succeed: an ambitious plan; an ambitious student.
- ambitiously adverb
- In a way that shows strong desire for success.
- ambitiousness noun
- The quality of being ambitious, less common than ambition.
Practice
Complete the sentence: 'From childhood, her _____ was to design bridges.'
Choose one answer.
The sentence needs a strong desire or goal, so ambition fits. Salary is payment, while cognate and ancillary have unrelated meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ambition”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.