acquiree

[ uh-kwahyuhr-ee ]

noun

1. something that is acquired:

   a press conference to promote the conglomerate's latest acquirees.

Word History and Origins

Origin of acquiree¹

acquire + -ee

Example Sentences

You have to be sensitive to that, both when you’re the acquirer and when you’re the acquiree.

From Freakonomics

More About Acquiree

What does acquiree mean?

An acquiree is a company that has been bought by another. The acquirer is the company doing the buying.

In general, acquiree can simply mean something that is acquired, but it is almost always used in the context of mergers and acquisitions to refer to a company or other type of property bought by a company.

Acquiree is a noun form of the verb acquire. Other noun forms of acquire that can refer to things that are acquired are acquisition and acquirement. However, acquisition is much more commonly used than the others, both in general and in the context of businesses buying other businesses.

Example: The company’s latest acquiree is its largest competitor.

Where does acquiree come from?

The first records of the word acquiree come from the 1900s. Its base word, the verb acquire, comes from the Latin acquīrere, meaning “to add to one’s possessions.” In legal terminology, words that end in -ee are the object or recipient of the action specified by the verb—in this case, the object of the acquiring. Such words (like lessee—the recipient of a lease) are often used in contrast (and alongside) words that end in -er or -or, which indicates the agent of the action (like lessor—the one granting the lease).

The use of acquiree is narrow. It almost always refers to a company bought out by another company or acquired as part of a merger. Acquisition is more commonly used to mean the same thing, but it’s also used in several other ways. In the context of museums, an acquisition is an addition to the collection, typically one that has been purchased or donated. Acquisition can also refer to the process of acquiring, but acquiree is never used this way.

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What are some other forms related to acquiree?

• acquire (verb)
• acquirer (noun)

What are some synonyms for acquiree?

• acquisition

What are some words that share a root or word element with acquiree? 

 

• acquirement
• acquisitive
• lessee
• grantee
• assignee

What are some words that often get used in discussing acquiree?

• company
• business
• merger
• property
• possession
• buy

How is acquiree used in real life?

Acquiree is especially used in a legal context and is often used somewhat formally.

Monsanto goes from acquirer to acquiree. Bayer wants to buy it for $62 billion. https://t.co/hBHrnOSqWr

— Paul R. La Monica (@LaMonicaBuzz) May 23, 2016

Isn’t $INCY supposed to be the acquiree not the acquirer? https://t.co/oLQs6mKzd9

— Adam Feuerstein (@adamfeuerstein) May 9, 2016

Amazon recently acquired Whole Foods Market (WFM) which was founded by John Mackey. Jeff Bezos acquires a company only when he knows he can’t replicate what the acquiree is doing. That speaks a ton about what John Mackey has done. I enjoyed this interview. https://t.co/BHf9o1Pla6

— Anshul Khare (@_anshulkhare) January 15, 2018

 

 

Try using acquiree!

Is acquiree used correctly in the following sentence? 

The acquiree is finalizing the purchase of the acquirer.