different between commission vs enterprise

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French commission, from Latin commissi? (“sending together; commission”), from prefix com- (“with”), + noun of action missi? (“sending”), from perfect passive participle missus (“sent”), from the verb mitt? (“to send”), + noun of action suffix -i?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k??m???n/
• Rhymes: -???n

Noun

commission (countable and uncountable, plural commissions)

1. A sending or mission (to do or accomplish something).
2. An official charge or authority to do something, often used of military officers.
3. The thing to be done as agent for another.

4. A body or group of people, officially tasked with carrying out a particular function.
   • 1856-1858, William H. Prescott, History of the Reign of Philip II

     A commission was at once appointed to examine into the matter.

   Synonyms: committee, government body

5. A fee charged by an agent or broker for carrying out a transaction.

   Hyponyms: (to a broker) brokerage, (to a shroff) shroffage

6. The act of committing (e.g. a crime).

   • Every commission of sin introduces into the soul a certain degree of hardness.

   Antonym: omission

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

commission (third-person singular simple present commissions, present participle commissioning, simple past and past participle commissioned)

1. (transitive) To send or officially charge someone or some group to do something.
   • 2012, August 1. Owen Gibson in Guardian Unlimited, London 2012: rowers Glover and Stanning win Team GB's first gold medal

     Stanning, who was commissioned from Sandhurst in 2008 and has served in Afghanistan, is not the first solider to bail out the organisers at these Games but will be among the most celebrated.

2. (transitive) To place an order for (often piece of art)

3. (transitive) To put into active service

Translations

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin commissio, commissionem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k?.mi.sj??/

Noun

commission f (plural commissions)

1. commission (fee charged by an agent or broker for carrying out a transaction)

Derived terms

• Commission européenne

Descendants

• ? Persian: ???????? (komisiyon)
• ? Turkish: komisyon

Further reading

• “commission” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

English

Alternative forms

• enterprize (chiefly archaic)
• entreprise (chiefly archaic)

Etymology

From Old French via Middle English and Middle French entreprise, feminine past participle of entreprendre (“to undertake”), from entre (“in between”) + prendre (“to take”), from Latin inter + prehend?, see prehensile.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??nt??p?a?z/
• Hyphenation: en?ter?prise

Noun

enterprise (countable and uncountable, plural enterprises)

1. A company, business, organization, or other purposeful endeavor.

   The government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) are a group of financial services corporations which have been created by the United States Congress.

   A micro-enterprise is defined as a business having 5 or fewer employees and a low seed capital.

2. An undertaking, venture, or project, especially a daring and courageous one.

   Biosphere 2 was a scientific enterprise aimed at the exploration of the complex web of interactions within life systems.

3. (uncountable) A willingness to undertake new or risky projects; energy and initiative.

   He has shown great enterprise throughout his early career.

   • 1954, Philip Larkin, Continuing to Live

     This loss of interest, hair, and enterprise — / Ah, if the game were poker, yes, / You might discard them, draw a full house! / But it's chess.

4. (uncountable) Active participation in projects. (Can we add an example for this sense?)

Synonyms

• initiative

Derived terms

• enterprising
• commercial enterprise
• scientific enterprise

Translations

Verb

enterprise (third-person singular simple present enterprises, present participle enterprising, simple past and past participle enterprised)

1. (intransitive) To undertake an enterprise, or something hazardous or difficult.

   • Charles Mordaunt Earl of Peterborow […] , with only 280 horse and 950 foot , enterprised and accomplished the Conquest of Valentia

2. (transitive) To undertake; to begin and attempt to perform; to venture upon.
   • 1670, John Dryden, The Conquest of Granada

     The business must be enterprised this night.

   • c. 1680, Thomas Otway, letter to Elizabeth Barry

     What would I not renounce or enterprise for you!

3. (transitive) To treat with hospitality; to entertain.

References

• enterprise at OneLook Dictionary Search
• enterprise in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
• enterprise in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• entreprise