Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Initiative |
InitiativeAdjective1. Serving to set in motion; "the magazine's inaugural issue"; "the initiative phase in the negotiations"; "an initiatory step toward a treaty"; "his first (or maiden) speech in Congress"; "the liner's maiden voyage". Noun1. Readiness to embark on bold new ventures. 2. The first of a series of actions; "he memorized all the important chess openings". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "initiative" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1380. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Economics | Is conceived of as the thinking out and execution of a plan. . . . Fayol exhorts managers to sacrifice personal vanity. . . to permit subordinates to achieve it. Source: European Union. (references) |
Law | A method of legislating that requires a vote of the people instead of a vote of the Legislature for a measure to become law. To qualify for a statewide ballot, statutory initiatives must receive signatures equal to 5 percent, and constitutional amendment initiatives must receive signatures equal to 8 percent, of the voters for all candidates for Governor at the last gubernatorial election. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
In political science, the initiative is a means by which a petition can force a public vote on a proposed statute, constitutional/charter amendment, or ordinance.Some well-known examples of initiatives are various ballot measures ("propositions") enacted by voters in California, notably Proposition 13 which was enacted in 1978 to limit real estate tax rates.
An initiative is usually distinguished from a referendum in that a referendum is submitted to voters by a vote of a legislature, while an initiative can be placed on the ballot in some jurisdictions by obtaining a sufficient number of signatures on a petition.
See also: recall, referendum
The term is also used in games such as chess. In Role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, initiative refers to the order in which characters take actions.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Initiative."
| The following table is compiled from various sources, across various languages. When English abbreviations or acronyms come from a non-English source, this is noted. | |||
| Entry | Source | Expression | Field |
| INTERPRISE | English | Initiative to encourage partnership between industries and/or services in Europe | Economics |
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |||
Synonyms: InitiativeSynonyms: first (adj), inaugural (adj), initiatory (adj), maiden (adj), enterprise (n), enterprisingness (n), first step (n), go-ahead (n), opening (n), opening move (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Beginning | Usher in; lead off, lead the way; take the lead, take the initiative; head; stand at the head, stand first, stand for; lay the foundations; (prepare); found; (cause); set up, set on foot, agoing, set abroach, set the ball in motion; apply the match to a train; broach; open up, open the door to. |
Noun: beginning, commencement, opening, outset, incipience, inception, inchoation; introduction; (precursor); alpha, initial; inauguration, debut, le premier pas, embarcation, rising of the curtain; maiden speech; outbreak, onset, brunt; initiative, move, first move; narrow end of the wedge, thin end of the wedge; fresh start, new departure. | |
Adjective: beginning; Verb: initial, initiatory, initiative; inceptive, introductory, incipient; proemial, inaugural; inchoate, inchoative; embryonic, rudimental; primogenial; primeval, primitive, primordial; (old); aboriginal; natal, nascent. | |
Government | Election, poll, ballot, vote, referendum, recall, initiative, voice, suffrage, plumper, cumulative vote, plebiscitum, plebiscite, vox populi; electioneering; voting; Verb: elective franchise; straight ticket; opinion poll, popularity poll. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Initiative comes to thems that wait (A Clockwork Orange; writing credit: Stanley Kubrick) | |
Clever | You can't build character and courage by taking away men's initiative and independence. (references; author: unknown) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
References | |||
Books |
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Periodicals | |||
Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Figure 41. Kiel Commission Hydrometers - these hydrometers were created in 1870 at the initiative of the Commission of Scientific Studies of German Waters at Kiel. Credit: Sailing for Science - the NOAA Fleet Then and Now. |  | District Conservationist Carman Westerfield and cooperator stand in front of a recently installed Buffer Initiative sign. Lamar County, Georgia. Credit: Jeff Vanuga. |
 | Nutritionist Margret Bogle, director of the Delta Nutrition Intervention Research Initiative gets a snack from one of the children she talked to about nutrition. Credit: USDA. |  | At a farm in Grady, Arkansas, nutritionist Margaret Bogle, director of the Delta Nutrition Intervention Research Initiative, talks about the importance of eating fresh vegetables with students from the Child Development Center at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. P. Credit: USDA ARS News; photo by Ken Hammond.. |
 | Benefit concert : Sons of Champlin ... California Marijuana Initiative, '74. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Free pot, free yourself : sign petition here. Weed week January 21-27, '74. Support the California Marijuana Initiative. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Initiative sur les banques : luttons contre la fraude fiscale!. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Zensur : Zensur in Deutschland : Weranstaltung der Initiative Bayerischer Strafverteidiger ... Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Victor Hugo | Initiative is doing the right thing without being told. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Author | Date | Quotation |
Communist Manifesto | 1848 | But the proletariat, as yet in its infancy, offers to them the spectacle of a class without any historical initiative or any independent political movement. (reference) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | The AD Prevention Initiative will stimulate laboratory and clinical research in these areas. (references) | |
The NIA Collaborative Studies Initiative was established to address SCU research from a variety of perspectives. (references) | ||
A major research initiative is required to improve assessment and treatment for Americans with urinary incontinence. (references) | ||
Business | Management needs to teach initiative, self-confidence and dynamism. (references) | |
This last venture is unique, since it is intended to be a global initiative. (references) | ||
Unfortunately this kind of initiative has not taken place in the rest of Venezuela. (references) | ||
Children | Algeria | The Government also attempts to finance specialized training, but this initiative remains rudimentary. (references) |
Guatemala | The plan is an initiative to fight child prostitution and pornography, trafficking of children, and sex tourism. (references) | |
Ghana | In 2000 the former First Lady launched an initiative to establish the country's first women's university; however, no women's university has been established. (references) | |
Civil Liberties | Ireland | It also can examine books (but not periodicals) on its own initiative. (references) |
Yemen | The new initiative was not applied to refugees and there were no reports of due process violations. (references) | |
Belarus | They made this decision despite the fact that Independent View was a name for a joint initiative launched by several officially registered democratic NGO's. (references) | |
Economic History | Grenada | Grenada also is a beneficiary of the U.S. Caribbean Basin Initiative. (references) |
Dominica | Dominica is a beneficiary of the U.S. Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI). (references) | |
Antigua and Barbuda | Antigua and Barbuda is a beneficiary of the U.S. Caribbean Basin Initiative. (references) | |
Human Rights | Morocco | On April 13, the King issued a decree expanding the CCDH's mandate to allow it to investigate cases on its own initiative. (references) |
Yugoslavia | On August 31, unknown assailants killed Qerim Ismaili of the Kosovo Democratic Initiative in Donje Godance, near Stimlje/Stime. (references) | |
Senegal | On its own initiative, it may investigate human rights abuses, including torture; however, it did not investigate any cases of abuse during the year. (references) | |
Indigenous People | Australia | In addition the 2001-02 federal budget allocated a further $27.5 million (A$53.9 million) over a 4-year period for programs under this initiative. (references) |
Australia | The fund is a separate initiative from the Native Title Tribunal, that is, the fund is not for payment of compensation to indigenous people for loss of land or to titleholders for return of land to indigenous people. (references) | |
Minorities | Greece | The Ombudsman's Office stated that the Romani community needs to take more initiative. (references) |
Political Economy | Colombia | President Bush is requesting further assistance to Colombia as part of a broader Andean Regional Initiative. (references) |
KUWAIT | During 2001, this rule was suspended from June until October to allow free transfer of sponsorship at the employee's initiative. (references) | |
VENEZUELA | However, it can only act based on a complaint by a copyright holder; it cannot carry out an arrest or seizure on its own initiative. (references) | |
Political Rights | Uzbekistan | Only 16 of the 250 winning candidates had been nominated by citizens' initiative groups. (references) |
Switzerland | Initiative and referendum procedures provide unusually intense popular involvement in the legislative process. (references) | |
Switzerland | In 1999 the electorate overwhelmingly rejected a popular initiative to mandate equal gender representation in all federal institutions. (references) | |
Trade | Spain | The initiative for the payment in this case is the importer's responsibility. (references) |
Kenya | This liberalization initiative has strongly enhanced the Kenyan business environment. (references) | |
Croatia | SEEF is the result of an OPIC initiative to accelerate private sector investment in the SEE region. (references) | |
Travel | Uruguay | At such meetings, personal matters should not be discussed on your initiative. (references) |
Guinea | Through USAID's Leland Initiative, Guinea gained full Internet access in 1997. Three local service providers are: SOTELGUI, BINTA, MIRINET, AFRIPA-TELECOM, and ETI. (references) | |
Cote D'ivoire | Côte d'Ivoire was selected as a site to be funded under the Leland initiative, a five-year USD 15 million USAID project to install full Internet connectivity in up to 20 African countries. (references) | |
Women | Kyrgyz Republic | The Center for Women's Initiative, Aigerim, introduced programs to assist with needy families. (references) |
Tanzania | The Ministry of Health continued an educational campaign on FGM as part of its Safe Motherhood Initiative. (references) | |
Taiwan | The law allows prosecutors to take the initiative in investigating complaints of domestic violence without waiting for a spouse to file a formal lawsuit. (references) | |
Worker Rights | Switzerland | However, neither initiative had been implemented by year's end. (references) |
India | Rugmark, which is a private initiative, operates a similar voluntary label scheme. (references) | |
Switzerland | Parallel to the submission of the petition, a parliamentary initiative called for similar measures. (references) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
Rush Limbaugh | President Bush has started a new initiative to fix America's woefully inept history education, so let's help by telling kids who Chamberlain was. |
Senator Joseph Biden | I think it was inappropriate to give a forum to Bibi in the United States Capitol for the purpose of countering the initiative of the president of the United States at this moment. There is plenty of time to do that when Powell comes home. |
Yasser Arafat | Not to forget, first of all, we had agreed upon, from the beginning, to go together and to participate in the Madrid conference, according to this initiative which has been declared by President Bush, peace for land and land for peace. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
John F. Kennedy | 1961-1963 | To seize that initiative, I shall shortly send to the Congress a new five-year Trade Expansion Action, far-reaching in scope but designed with great care to make certain that its benefits to our people far outweigh any risks. |
Lyndon B. Johnson | 1963-1969 | Finding new markets abroad for our goods depends on the initiative of American business. |
Jimmy Carter | 1977-1981 | A premature commitment to a high challenge, space-engineering initiative of the complexity of Apollo is inappropriate. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | Our funding request for our Strategic Defense Initiative is less than two percent of the total defense budget. |
Bill Clinton | 1993-2001 | From the day we began, our health care initiative has been designed to strengthen all that is good about our health care system. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Initiative" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 99.95% of the time. "Initiative" is used about 3,645 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 99.95% | 3,643 | 2,667 |
| Noun (proper) | 0.05% | 2 | 245,945 |
| Total | 100.00% | 3,645 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Country | Name |
| France | Initiative et Finance Investissement |
| (more examples...) |
Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.
Expressions using "initiative": abundance of initiative ♦ Cad Framework Initiative ♦ Defence Capabilities Initiative ♦ digital Library Initiative ♦ European Software and Systems Initiative ♦ full of initiative ♦ man of initiative ♦ Midwest Regional Rail Initiative ♦ on one's own initiative ♦ Open Microprocessor Initiative ♦ open Source Initiative ♦ peace initiative ♦ power of initiative ♦ Space Launch Initiative ♦ strategic defense initiative ♦ sudden initiative ♦ take the initiative ♦ text Encoding Initiative ♦ want of initiative. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "initiative": initiative-taking, initiative-which. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "initiative"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | iniciator (initiator, initiatory, originator), iniciativë (enterprise, gumption), nismë. (various references) | |
Arabic | مبادرة (action, beginning, lead), حق التقدم على الآخرين, تمهيدي (draft, introductory, precursory, prefatory, preliminary, preparatory, propaedeutic, sketchy), خطوة أولى, روح المبادرة. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | уводен (initiatory, introductory, precursory, prefatory, prelusive, preparatory, propaedeutic), начален (auroral, elemental, embryo, inceptive, incipient, infantile, initial, initiatory, introductory, opening, original), начинание (enterprise, undertaking), предприемчивост (adventurousness, drive, enterprise, go, go ahead, gumption, push), подготвителен (initiatory, preliminary, prelusive, preparative, preparatory, propaedeutic), инициатива (enterprise, lead). (various references) | |
Chinese | 積極性 (activity, enthusiasm, zeal), 主动性, 主動 . (various references) | |
Czech | iniciativa (enterprise), popud (goad, impulse, incentive, incitement, stimulus), podnìt (impulse, incentive, stimulus, suggestion, swing). (various references) | |
Danish | initiativ. (various references) | |
Dutch | initiatief. (various references) | |
Farsi | پیشقدمی , قریحه , اغازی (Initial), ابتکار (Contraption, Gumption, Improvisation, Industry, Invention, Knack, Originality, Resource, Shebang, Shift). (various references) | |
Finnish | alullepano (starting), aloitekykyisyys (enterprise), aloitekyky (enterprise). (various references) | |
French | initiative. (various references) | |
German | initiative (enterprise), Unternehmungsgeist (enterprise). (various references) | |
Greek | πρωτοβουλία. (various references) | |
Hebrew | יוזמה (enterprise), יוזם (initiator, originator, promoter), יזמה (enterprise, resourcefulness). (various references) | |
Hungarian | megnyitó ténykedés, kezdeményezés (initiation), kezdemény. (various references) | |
Indonesian | inisiatif (gumption), ikhtiar (effort, free will, judgement, means), prakarsa. (various references) | |
Italian | iniziativa (enterprise, step, venture). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 先鞭 (pioneering), 先議 (prior consideration), 先手 (black player, forestalling, front lines, the first move, vanguard), イディッシュ語 (catnip, id, ideologue, ideology, initial, initialize, initials, initiation, initiator, inning, Yiddish), 主導権 (hegemony, leadership). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | しゅどうけん (hegemony, leadership), せんぎ (ancestor, discussion, examination, prior consideration), せんべん (pioneering), せんて (black player, forestalling, the first move), イニシアチブ , イニシアティブ . (various references) | |
Korean | 기선. (various references) | |
Manx | bree (animation, drift, effect, energy, essence, exhalation, gist, glow, implication, importance, interpretation, inwardness, power, significance, stamina, validity, vigour, virtue). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | initiativeay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | iniciativa (enterprise, gumption). (various references) | |
Romanian | introductiv (initiatory, introductive, introductory), iniţiativã (lead, motion), preliminar (initiatory, introductory, preliminary, preparative, tentative), de iniţiere (initiatory), de început (early, inceptive, initial, opening). (various references) | |
Russian | почин (handsel, send off), инициативный (enterprising), инициатива инициативный, инициатива. (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | inicijativa, započinjanje (inception), začetni (germinal), uvodan. (various references) | |
Spanish | iniciativa (enterprise, lead, leadership, resourcefulness). (various references) | |
Swedish | inledande (initial, prefatory), initiativkraft, initiativ, förste (chief, earliest, first, foremost, front, initial, original, primary, principal), första (first), företagsamhet (enterprise), begynnelse- (incipient). (various references) | |
Thai | การเริ่มต้น (conception), ความริเริ่ม. (various references) | |
Turkish | ilk adım (approach, first step, toe-hold), ilk (early, elementary, first, initial, initiatory, maiden, preliminary, premier, primal, primary, prime, primitive, primordial, pristine, proto-, the very first), yasa teklifinde bulunma hakkı, neden olan (causative, conducive, creative, facient, provoking), girişkenlik (enterprise, gumption, sociability), girişim (approach, attempt, bid, effort, enterprise, essay, fist, go, interference, ploy, shot, show, step, trial, undertaking, venture), başlatan (initiatory, opener), önayak olma, ön (ante-, anterior, face, fore, forward, front, frontal, pre-, precursory, preliminary, presence, pro-). (various references) | |
Turkmen | inisiatiwa (r). (various references) | |
Ukrainian | ініціатива (instrumentality, overture), вступний (exordial, inaugural, inductive, introductory, opening, prefatorial, prefatory, prelusive, prodromic), винахідливість (adroitness, contrivance, ingenuity, invention, inventiveness, nimbleness, resourcefulness), початковий (a.b.c., arch-, archetypal, basic, elemental, inceptive, inchoate, inchoative, incipient, infant, initial, initiatory, institutional, opening, original, originary, primary, prime, primordial, protoplastic). (various references) | |
Vietnamese | sự khởi xướng sáng kiến, sự khởi đầu (inception, initiation), khởi đầu (originally, originative), bắt đầu (inceptive, inchoative, initiatory, opening), bước đầu (alphabet, rudimental, rudimentary). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | ausus, orsus, orsusque. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "initiative": initiatives. (additional references) | |
| |
"Initiative" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Iniciativa, initative, Initiativ, initiativve, initiatve, inititive, inituitive, intiative. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "initiative" (pronounced i'ni"shutiv) |
| 4 | -u t i v | accusative, acquisitive, additive, affirmative, alliterative, alternative, anticompetitive, argumentative, causative, cognitive, commemorative, communicative, comparative, competitive, consecutive, conservative, consultative, contemplative, cumulative, curative, decorative, definitive, degenerative, demonstrative, derivative, diminutive, dispositive, duplicative, evocative, executive, expletive, exploitative, Federative, figurative, fixative, formative, fugitive, generative, hypersensitive, illustrative, imaginative, imperative, indicative, infinitive, informative, inoperative, inquisitive, insensitive, interpretive, intuitive, laxative, lucrative, narrative, negative, neoconservative, noncompetitive, noncumulative, nonexecutive, normative, nutritive, operative, palliative, participative, pejorative, positive, prerogative, preservative, preventative, primitive, prohibitive, provocative, punitive, putative, recuperative, relative, remunerative, rep, repetitive, representative, restorative, secretive, sedative, sensitive, speculative, superlative, talkative, tentative, ultraconservative, uncompetitive, uncooperative, unimaginative, uninformative, unrepresentative, vituperative. |
| 3 | -t i v | accommodative, abortive, accumulative, active, adaptive, addictive, adjective, administrative, adoptive, affective, appointive, appreciative, assaultive, assertive, attentive, attractive, authoritative, automotive, captive, collaborative, collective, combative, conductive, congestive, connective, constructive, contraceptive, cooperative, corrective, corruptive, counterproductive, creative, deceptive, defective, deliberative, descriptive, destructive, detective, digestive, dilutive, directive, disincentive, disparages, disruptive, dissipative, distinctive, distributive, effective, elective, elucidative, eruptive, exhaustive, exploitive, facultative, festive, furtive, hyperactive, imitative, inactive, inattentive, incentive, ineffective, infective, injunctive, innovative, instinctive, instructive, interactive, introspective, invective, inventive, investigative, irrespective, iterative, legislative, locomotive, manipulative, meditative, motive, native, nonautomotive, nonnative, nonproductive, objective, obstructive, octave, overactive, perceptive, perspective, photoconductive, plaintive, predictive, preemptive, presumptive, preventive, proactive, probative, productive, prognosticative, projective, prospective, protective, qualitative, quantitative, radioactive, reactive, receptive, reconstructive, redemptive, redistributive, reflective, refractive, regulative, rehabilitative, reproductive, respective, restive, restrictive, retroactive, retrospective, seductive, selective, stimulative, subjective, substantive, suggestive, superconductive, supportive, unattractive, unproductive, unreceptive, vegetative, vindictive. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-e-i-i-i-i-n-t-t-v" | |
-2 letters: initiate. | |
-3 letters: vitiate. | |
-4 letters: invite, native, titian, vittae. | |
-5 letters: entia, naevi, naive, taint, tenia, tinea, titan, vitae, vitta. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-e-i-i-i-i-n-t-t-v" | |
+1 letter: initiatives. | |
+2 letters: inactivities. | |
+3 letters: inevitability. | |
+4 letters: transitivities. | |
+5 letters: antivivisection, devitrification, inevitabilities, intervisitation, nonadditivities. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
