acquire
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to come into possession or ownership of; get as one's own.
to acquire property.
-
to gain for oneself through one's actions or efforts.
to acquire learning.
- Synonyms:
- appropriate, attain, earn, win
-
Linguistics. to achieve native or nativelike command of (a language or a linguistic rule or element).
-
Military. to locate and track (a moving target) with a detector, as radar.
verb
Usage
What does acquire mean? Acquire most commonly means to get, buy, or learn. Acquire has a lot of meanings that vary with context. Most of them refer to the act of getting something permanently. It has more specific meanings in linguistics and in the context of the military. It’s easy to misspell acquire as aquire, so don’t forget the c. Example: When the merger is complete, our company will have acquired its largest competitor.
Related Words
See get.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of acquire
First recorded in 1400–50; from Latin acquīrere “to add to one's possessions, acquire” ( ac- ac- + -quīrere, combining form of quaerere “to search for, obtain”); replacing late Middle English aquere, from Middle French aquerre, from Latin, as above
Explanation
To acquire means to get or come to own something. You acquire an education by your own effort. You acquire a painting by paying for it or by someone giving it to you. You acquire a sense of calm in crisis through experience. The list of things you can acquire includes: an object, a trait, a skill, or an ability. An acquired taste is something that people usually don't like when they first experience it, but later they come to enjoy it, such as raw clams or marmite. The verb acquire was borrowed from Latin acquīrere "to add to," from the prefix ad- "at, toward" plus quaerere "to seek, get."
Vocabulary lists containing acquire
List 4
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Frindle
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Boy: Tales of Childhood
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
After a failed attempt to acquire what was then Time Warner, Murdoch sold most of the company’s entertainment assets to Disney for $71.3 billion in 2019.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 8, 2026
An October 2025 deal the U.S. struck with Lithium Americas gives it warrants to acquire 5% of the company at a near-zero strike price in exchange for a $2.3 billion loan.
From Barron's • May 8, 2026
“The acquisition follows SoundHound’s recent playbook to acquire key customer relationships that SoundHound can cross-sell and upsell driven by interest in its best-of-breed voice-AI platform,” Luria said.
From MarketWatch • May 7, 2026
GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen offered $56 billion, or $125 per share, to acquire eBay, but Wall Street doubts the deal.
From Barron's • May 6, 2026
Most academics can effortlessly dispense this kind of sludge, and many students, like Zonker Harris in this Doonesbury cartoon, acquire the skill without having to be taught.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
