English 'enterprise' comes from Old French 'enterprise' (something undertaken), from 'entre-' (between) + 'prendre' (to take, from Latin 'prehendere,' to seize) — literally 'a thing seized between parties,' and the same Latin root for grasping also produced 'prison,' 'surprise,' and 'comprehend.'
A project or undertaking, especially a bold or complex one; a business organization.
From Old French 'enterprise' (an undertaking, a venture, a bold deed), the feminine past participle of 'entreprendre' (to undertake, to take in hand), composed of 'entre-' (between, among, from Latin 'inter-') + 'prendre' (to take, to grasp, from Latin 'prehendere,' to seize, to grasp). 'Prehendere' derives from PIE *ghend- (to seize, to grasp), the root that also produced 'prehensile' (able to grasp), 'comprehend' (to grasp fully), 'apprehend' (to grasp mentally or physically), 'reprehend' (to grasp back — to rebuke), and 'prison' (a place of being seized — from 'prehensionem'). 'Inter-' is from PIE *h₁énter (between, among). An enterprise was literally 'a thing
The words 'enterprise,' 'prison,' 'surprise,' and 'prize' all descend from Latin 'prehendere' (to seize). An enterprise is something seized upon; a prison is where you are seized and held; a surprise seizes you unexpectedly; and a prize is something seized in war. The corporate world and the criminal justice system share a root in grasping.