acquisitive
Americanadjective
adjective
Usage
What does acquisitive mean? Acquisitive most generally means tending or seeking to gain possession of wealth or material things, especially in a greedy way. It’s perhaps most commonly used in a more specific way to describe companies that are known for acquiring (buying) other companies and properties—which are often referred to as acquisitions. (However, it’s used much less commonly than acquisition.) This sense of the word doesn’t necessarily imply greediness like the more general sense does, but it can imply that such companies tend to buy up competitors. Example: The tech conglomerates are notoriously acquisitive, buying out any startup that has some technology they want.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of acquisitive
1630–40; < Medieval Latin, Late Latin acquīsītīvus; see acquisition, -ive
Explanation
It may seem like your acquisitive cousin never talks about anything but shopping. Someone who's acquisitive is preoccupied with possessing material things. If you were trying to improve yourself by becoming less acquisitive, you might destroy your credit cards and force yourself to take a break from buying things. The adjective acquisitive comes from Latin word for "accumulate," acquirere, so when you're consumed with accumulating more and more, you can describe yourself as acquisitive. It's an easy word to confuse with inquisitive, which means "curious or inquiring." It's much better to be inquisitive than acquisitive!
Vocabulary lists containing acquisitive
Never Let Me Go
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American Gods
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Brian Friel (1929-2015) Tribute List
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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.
Acquisitive firms are now trying clever tactics, which they hope will annoy regulators less.
From Economist • Dec. 10, 2015
Acquisitive Mania It fell to a few movie magazines to suggest strongly that Onassis was a possible spouse—which suggests that perhaps movie magazines should be considered more seriously.
From Time Magazine Archive
Acquisitive as his company is, President David N. Judelson has insisted that Gulf & Western Industries wanted no part of any corporation "where the management doesn't welcome our entrance."
From Time Magazine Archive
Acquisitive LTV has expanded since 1957 from an obscure electrical contractor into a $3.75 billion-a-year corporation.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Acquisitive Society," R. H. Tawney, arrives at the conclusion that "obsession by economic issues is as local and transitory as it is repulsive and disturbing.
From The Pivot of Civilization by Sanger, Margaret
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.
