acquire

American  

[uh-kwahyuhr] / əˈkwaɪər /

verb (used with object)

acquired, acquiring

1. to come into possession or ownership of; get as one's own.

   to acquire property.

2. to gain for oneself through one's actions or efforts.

   to acquire learning.

   Synonyms:

   appropriate, attain, earn, win

3. Linguistics. to achieve native or nativelike command of (a language or a linguistic rule or element).

4. Military. to locate and track (a moving target) with a detector, as radar.

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acquire British  

/ əˈkwaɪə /

verb

1. (tr) to get or gain (something, such as an object, trait, or ability), esp more or less permanently

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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

• acquirability noun
• acquirable adjective
• acquirement noun
• acquirer noun
• preacquire verb
• reacquire verb (used with object)
• self-acquired adjective
• unacquirable adjective
• unacquired adjective
• well-acquired adjective

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."

Example Sentences

Investors have become more bullish on Netflix since it abandoned its effort in February to acquire Warner Bros.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 15, 2026

That’s roughly $2 billion shy of what Amazon paid to acquire Whole Foods in 2017 and more than what it paid to beef up its streaming service with MGM in 2021.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 15, 2026

Amazon on Tuesday announced a $11.6 billion deal to acquire satellite operator Globalstar in a bid to compete with Elon Musk’s Starlink service.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Nvidia denied reports of being in talks to acquire a large PC or server company, calling the media report false.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

The same pattern repeated itself elsewhere in the world, whenever peoples lacking native wild mammal species suitable for domestication finally had the opportunity to acquire Eurasian domestic animals.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• achieve
• amass
• bring in
• buy
• collect
• earn
• gain
• get
• have
• pick up
• promote
• take
• win