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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Initiative: Definition, Usage & Key Examples (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：proactive ability (initiative)

initiative 🔊

/ɪˈnɪʃətɪv/

The ability to see what needs to be done and start doing it without being told.

Initiative illustrated by a confident student raising hand to ask a question in class.

proactive ability 🔊

➕

/prəˈæktɪv əˈbɪləti/

The personal quality of assessing a situation and independently deciding to take the first steps toward a goal or solution.

📁 Category：Behaviors & Actions 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'initium' (beginning) + '-ative' (tending to).

💡 Mnemonic

Think: IN IT, I ACTIVE. When you are 'in it', you are already starting and need to be active.

📖 Example

He showed great initiative by organizing a study group before the final exam when he noticed many classmates were struggling. 🔊 He demonstrated proactive ability by forming a study group ahead of the final exam upon seeing his classmates' difficulties.

🔗 Collocations

take the initiative – To be the first to act or propose something.

show initiative – To demonstrate the ability to act independently.

lack of initiative – An absence of the willingness to start things independently.

🔄 Synonyms

proactivity (n.) – The practice of acting in advance of a future situation.

enterprise (n.) – Readiness to engage in new, daring, or difficult undertakings.

resourcefulness (n.) – The ability to find quick and clever ways to overcome difficulties.

🚫 Antonyms

passivity (n.) – Acceptance of what happens without active response or resistance.

inertia (n.) – A tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged.

🌱 Derivatives

initiator (n.) – A person or thing that initiates something.

initiatory (adj.) – Relating to an initiation or beginning.

📖 Cultural Story

Derived from Latin 'initium', meaning 'a beginning'. It entered English in the 18th century. The term gained prominence in military and business contexts, valuing the ability of individuals to act independently and start new ventures, notably emphasized by Napoleon's preference for 'lucky' generals who took the initiative.

Meaning 2：new plan or action (initiative)

initiative 🔊

/ɪˈnɪʃətɪv/

A new plan or action taken to solve a problem or improve a situation.

Community initiative shown by a diverse team planting trees together in a park.

new plan or action 🔊

➕

/njuː plæn ɔːr ˈækʃən/

A specific plan, project, or strategy, often formally introduced by an organization or government, designed to address a particular issue or achieve a goal.

📁 Category：Countries & Government 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

The city government launched a new green initiative to plant 10,000 trees in urban parks over the next two years. 🔊 The municipal authorities started a new environmental plan to plant ten thousand trees in city parks within two years.

🔗 Collocations

launch an initiative – To formally start or introduce a new project or plan.

government initiative – A plan or action undertaken by a governing body.

community initiative – A project started and often run by local residents.

🔄 Synonyms

project (n.) – A planned piece of work with a specific aim.

scheme (n.) – A large-scale systematic plan or arrangement.

drive (n.) – An organized effort to achieve a specific purpose.

🚫 Antonyms

inaction (n.) – Lack of action where some is expected or appropriate.

🌱 Derivatives

initiate (v.) – To cause a process or action to begin.