acknowledgment

[ak-nol-ij-muh nt]

noun

an act of acknowledging.
recognition of the existence or truth of something: the acknowledgment of a sovereign power.
an expression of appreciation.

a thing done or given in appreciation or gratitude.
Law.
1. a declaration before an official that one has executed a particular legal document.
2. an official certificate of a formal acknowledging.
3. public recognition by a man of an illegitimate child as his own.

Also especially British, ac·knowl·edge·ment.

Origin of acknowledgment

First recorded in 1585–95; acknowledge + -ment

Related formspre·ac·knowl·edge·ment, nounpre·ac·knowl·edg·ment, nounre·ac·knowl·edg·ment, nounsu·per·ac·knowl·edg·ment, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for acknowledgement

Contemporary Examples of acknowledgement

Such ongoing military action gets almost no acknowledgement, never mind serious scrutiny.
From the Levant to Ferguson to Baltimore, The Most Violent Summer in Years
Gene Robinson
September 14, 2014
Above all, artists deserve a milieu in which musical talent is celebrated and given some acknowledgement in the media.
Music Criticism Has Degenerated Into Lifestyle Reporting
Ted Gioia
March 18, 2014
Far from being limiting, this acknowledgement allowed her to make a series that speaks directly to the epidemic as it is today.
“Dirty 30”: Talking AIDS To The Basketball Wives Set
Hugh Ryan
February 16, 2014
The acknowledgement goes to the heart of a disagreement in the run-up to the Olympic Games.
Olympic ‘Black Widow’ Warning Caught U.S. Off-Guard
Eli Lake
January 25, 2014
It is, in short, the same old dog-eared Republican playbook with nary an acknowledgement that Obama just won reelection.
Why Paul Ryan’s Star Dimmed
Howard Kurtz
March 21, 2013

Historical Examples of acknowledgement

On 31 May followed a reply full of kindliness and acknowledgement.
Erasmus and the Age of Reformation
Johan Huizinga
Dark sent out a call to Cheng and received an acknowledgement.
Rebels of the Red Planet
Charles Louis Fontenay
The robot clicked its acknowledgement and moved on to the next table.
Starman's Quest
Robert Silverberg
Walter bowed in acknowledgement of the compliment, but did not speak.
The Boy Crusaders
John G. Edgar
Silence, and a starting tear, were her only acknowledgement.
Frank Mildmay
Captain Frederick Marryat

British Dictionary definitions for acknowledgement

acknowledgment

acknowledgement

noun

the act of acknowledging or state of being acknowledged
something done or given as an expression of thanks, as a reply to a message, etc
(plural) an author's statement acknowledging his use of the works of other authors, usually printed at the front of a book

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for acknowledgement

1590s, "act of acknowledging," from acknowledge + -ment. "An early instance of -ment added to an orig. Eng. vb." [OED]. Meaning "token of due recognition" is recorded from 1610s.

acknowledgment

alternative form of acknowledgement. OED deems it "a spelling more in accordance with Eng. values of letters."