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View synonyms for
free enterprise
[ free en-ter-prahyz ]
noun
- an economic and political doctrine holding that a capitalist economy can regulate itself in a freely competitive market through the relationship of supply and demand with a minimum of governmental intervention and regulation.
- the practice of free enterprise in an economy, or the right to practice it.
free enterprise
noun
- an economic system in which commercial organizations compete for profit with little state control
free enterprise
- The freedom of private businesses to operate competitively for profit with minimal governmental regulation .
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Other Word Forms
- ڰ-·ٱ··Բ adjective
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Word History and Origins
Origin of free enterprise1
First recorded in 1885–90
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Idioms and Phrases
Also, private enterprise . An undertaking on one's own behalf, especially a shady or illegal one. For example, The city treasurer didn't bother with competitive bids; the spirit of free enterprise just led him to his brother-in-law , or The sergeant indulged in a little private enterprise, selling cigarettes on the black market . This sarcastic application of a term that has meant, since about 1885, the freedom of private businesses to operate competitively for profit with a minimum of government control, dates from the mid-1900s.Discover More
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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