enter

Etymology

From Middle English entren, from Old French entrer, from Latin intrō (“enter”, verb), from intrā (“inside”). Has been spelled as "enter" for several centuries even in the United Kingdom, although British English and the English of many Commonwealth Countries (e.g. Australia, Canada) retain the "re" ending for many words such as centre, fibre, spectre, theatre, calibre, sombre, lustre, and litre.

verb

1. (intransitive) To go or come into an enclosed or partially enclosed space.
   You should knock before you enter, unless you want to see me naked.
   […]you can fynde in youre heartes to assaulte her with rebellion, or in any wise [ways] suffer any one eyvil motion to enter into your thoughtes against her? 1555, John Proctor, The historie of Wyates rebellion, with the order and maner of resisting the same, …, page 86
2. (transitive) To cause to go (into), or to be received (into); to put in; to insert; to cause to be admitted.
   to enter a knife into a piece of wood;  to enter a boy at college, a horse for a race, etc.
3. (figurative) To go or come into (a state or profession).
   My twelve-year-old son will be entering his teens next year.  She had planned to enter the legal profession.
   Until 2008 there was denial over what finance had become. … But the scandals kept coming, and so we entered stage three – what therapists call "bargaining". 2013-06-28, Joris Luyendijk, “Our banks are out of control”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 3, page 21
4. (transitive) To type (something) into a computer; to input.
   Enter your user name and password.
5. (transitive) To record (something) in an account, ledger, etc.
   Each amount entered in the debit column of the journal is posted by entering it on the credit side/column of of an account in the ledger. 2003, A. Mukherjee, M. Hanif, Financial Accounting, page 27
6. (intransitive, law) To become a party to an agreement, treaty, etc.
   I am pleased to notify the Congress of my intent to enter into a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the Government of Singapore. 2003-2-4, The President of the United States, “NOTIFICATION TO ENTER INTO A FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF SINGAPORE”, in U.S. Government Printing Office, retrieved 2013-09-09
7. (law, intransitive) To become effective; to come into effect.
   This Act shall enter into force on 01 March 1998. 2005, United Nations, Dispositions Législatives Et Réglementaires Nationales Relatives À la Prévention Et À L'élimination Du Terrorisme International, page 215
8. (law) To go into or upon, as lands, and take actual possession of them.
9. (transitive, law) To place in regular form before the court, usually in writing; to put upon record in proper from and order
   to enter a writ, appearance, rule, or judgment
10. To make report of (a vessel or its cargo) at the custom house; to submit a statement of (imported goods), with the original invoices, to the proper customs officer for estimating the duties. See entry.
11. (transitive, US, dated, historical) To file, or register with the land office, the required particulars concerning (a quantity of public land) in order to entitle a person to a right of preemption.
    Under existing laws governing the qualifications of an alien to enter 160 acres or more of the public domain he is only required to file his declaration of intent to become a citizen. 1887, United States General Land Office, Annual Report of the Commissioner of General Land Office, US Government Printing Office, page 82
12. To deposit for copyright the title or description of (a book, picture, map, etc.).
    entered according to act of Congress
13. (transitive, obsolete) To initiate; to introduce favourably.

noun

1. (computing) Alternative spelling of Enter (“the computer key”)
2. (computing) Alternative spelling of Enter (“a stroke of the computer key”)