Library / English Dictionary

UNDERTAKE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: undertaken    , undertook   

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Enter into a contractual arrangement

Synonyms:

contract; undertake

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "undertake" is one way to...):

assure; promise (make a promise or commitment)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "undertake"):

stipulate (make an oral contract or agreement in the verbal form of question and answer that is necessary to give it legal force)

sign (be engaged by a written agreement)

condition; qualify; specify; stipulate (specify as a condition or requirement in a contract or agreement; make an express demand or provision in an agreement)

lease; rent (let for money)

charter; hire; lease; rent (hold under a lease or rental agreement; of goods and services)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE

Sentence example:

They undertake to move

Sense 2

Meaning:

Promise to do or accomplish

Example:

guarantee to free the prisoners

Synonyms:

guarantee; undertake

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "undertake" is one way to...):

assure; promise (make a promise or commitment)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "undertake"):

subvent; subvention; underwrite (guarantee financial support of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE

Sense 3

Meaning:

Enter upon an activity or enterprise

Synonyms:

attempt; set about; undertake

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Hypernyms (to "undertake" is one way to...):

initiate; pioneer (take the lead or initiative in; participate in the development of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s VERB-ing

Derivation:

undertaking (any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Accept as a charge

Synonyms:

take in charge; undertake

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "undertake" is one way to...):

accept; consent; go for (give an affirmative reply to; respond favorably to)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 5

Meaning:

Accept as a challenge

Example:

I'll tackle this difficult task

Synonyms:

tackle; take on; undertake

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "undertake" is one way to...):

confront; face; face up (deal with (something unpleasant) head on)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "undertake"):

rise (exert oneself to meet a challenge)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Credits

 Context examples: 

And what's going to be undertook for that unfortunate young woman, Martha, now?

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

If he had any friends or any credit, we undertook that he should lose them.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

I should be vastly obliged to you, Craven, if you will undertake the duties.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

She then sought her eldest sister, who had undertaken to make inquiries on the same subject of Bingley.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

She could undertake therefore to inform him of it, in the course of the day.

(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)

After a time the voices died away, and some time after that he crept out to enjoy the success of his undertaking.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

When the soldier heard all this good counsel, he determined to try his luck: so he went to the king, and said he was willing to undertake the task.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

“I must go home now, for dad is very ill, and he misses me so if I leave him. Good-bye, and God help you in your undertaking.”

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

“I don’t care to undertake the herding of one of those harems,” I objected.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

The degree is not awarded solely for completing a prescribed number of courses, but for having undertaken and completed independent work in the discipline leading to an original contribution to knowledge.

(Doctor of Philosophy, NCI Thesaurus)