acquaintance
Americannoun
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a person known to one, but usually not a close friend.
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the state of being acquainted or casually familiar with someone or something.
As far as I know, no one of my acquaintance has traveled around the world.
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personal knowledge as a result of study, experience, etc..
a good acquaintance with French wines.
- Synonyms:
- awareness, familiarity
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(used with a plural verb) the persons with whom one is acquainted.
noun
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a person with whom one has been in contact but who is not a close friend
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knowledge of a person or thing, esp when slight
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to come into social contact with
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those persons collectively whom one knows
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philosophy the relation between a knower and the object of his knowledge, as contrasted with knowledge by description (esp in the phrase knowledge by acquaintance )
Related Words
Acquaintance, associate, companion, friend refer to a person with whom one is in contact. An acquaintance is someone recognized by sight or someone known, though not intimately: a casual acquaintance. An associate is a person who is often in one's company, usually because of some work, enterprise, or pursuit in common: a business associate. A companion is a person who shares one's activities, fate, or condition: a traveling companion; companion in despair. A friend is a person with whom one is on intimate terms and for whom one feels a warm affection: a trusted friend.
Other Word Forms
- acquaintanceship noun
- nonacquaintance noun
- nonacquaintanceship noun
- preacquaintance noun
- pseudoacquaintance noun
- reacquaintance noun
Etymology
Origin of acquaintance
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English acoyntaunce, aqueinta(u)nce, from Old French acointance; equivalent to acquaint + -ance
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.
“We are all worms, but I do believe that I am a glow-worm,” he told an acquaintance in 1906.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 22, 2026
Naturally, Ryland nicknames his new acquaintance Rocky and quickly realizes they’re both the only survivors aboard their ships, tasked with the same mission: save their dying planets.
From Salon • Mar. 21, 2026
Clinton said firmly that he was only a "brief acquaintance" of Epstein, and that their relationship "ended years before his crimes came to light".
From BBC • Mar. 2, 2026
Hafsa, a mental health student, was spurred to act after an acquaintance delayed seeking medical help for their child, meaning the youth's condition deteriorated by the time they sought help.
From Barron's • Jan. 30, 2026
“It is a very lovely pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear Pinktail.”
From "The Wild Robot" by Peter Brown
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.
