attainment
Americannoun
-
an act of attaining.
-
something attained; a personal acquirement; achievement.
- Synonyms:
- accomplishment
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of attainment
First recorded in 1350–1400, attainment is from the Middle English word attenement. See attain, -ment
Explanation
The effort put into something and the pay-off when the work is over is called attainment. Attainment of your goal of learning to make the perfect omelet requires breaking a lot of eggs. An attainment isn't just handed to you — you have to earn it through skill and hard work. In fact, in slang, attainment is used interchangeably with skill. You might say that the inventiveness and originality of a particular rapper is his attainment, just as his fame, fortune, and respect in the hip-hop community is also his attainment.
Vocabulary lists containing attainment
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Byrd and Igloo: A Polar Adventure
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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.
A 2023 study in the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the 2006 law that uncapped federal borrowing for graduate programs didn’t improve access or degree attainment.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026
In contrast, economist Christine Mulhern’s 2023 paper finds that individual high-school counselors have causal effects on educational attainment comparable in magnitude to teachers.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
“The irony is that steadily rising education attainment, notably enjoyed by young Latina mothers, leads to bearing fewer children.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2026
To reverse the trend, some schools have started to put measures in place to raise attainment.
From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026
Rather than channel his abilities into the attainment of awards and prizes, however, Gellert Grindelwald devoted himself to other pursuits.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
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.
