ambition

Everyday

1. A strong wish to do or become something special, like a big goal for the future. tree →
2. The drive to be successful, powerful or rich; when there is too much of it, it can make people selfish. tree →

In the lessons

Used in everyday life and school when talking about dreams and goals ("My ambition is to be a vet"). In stories it can be good (a hero's ambition) or dangerous (a villain's greedy ambition, as in Macbeth). Phrases: life's ambition, lifelong ambition, achieve an ambition, full of ambition, lack of ambition.

Examples

• My ambition is to play football for my country. tree →
• Her lifelong ambition was to visit Australia. tree →
• He finally achieved his ambition of climbing the mountain. tree →
• The teacher said our class is full of ambition. tree →
• The king's ambition made him cruel to his people. tree →
• Write about your greatest ambition in your diary. tree →
• Too much ambition can make you forget your friends. tree →
• So at last Jack's ambition was satisfied. tree →

Note

Countable for a particular goal (my ambitions), uncountable for the quality (she has a lot of ambition). Adjective: ambitious (an ambitious plan). Starts with a vowel sound, so "an ambition". Not always positive: "blind ambition" is a warning.