acquire
Americanverb (used with object)
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acquires,
present (3rd person singular)
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acquired,
past participle, past
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acquiring
present participle
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to come into possession or ownership of; get as one's own.
to acquire property.
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to gain for oneself through one's actions or efforts.
to acquire learning.
- Synonyms:
- appropriate, attain, earn, win
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Linguistics. to achieve native or nativelike command of (a language or a linguistic rule or element).
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Military. to locate and track (a moving target) with a detector, as radar.
verb
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.
Synonym Usage
See get.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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acquirabilitynoun
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acquirementnoun
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acquirernoun
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preacquireverb
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reacquireverb (used with object)
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acquirableadjective
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self-acquiredadjective
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unacquirableadjective
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unacquiredadjective
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well-acquiredadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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acquiresimple
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acquiressimple
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have acquiredperfect
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has acquiredperfect
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am acquiringprogressive
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are acquiringprogressive
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is acquiringprogressive
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have been acquiringperfect progressive
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has been acquiringperfect progressive
Past
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acquiredsimple
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had acquiredperfect
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was acquiringprogressive
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were acquiringprogressive
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had been acquiringperfect progressive
Future
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."
Vocabulary lists containing acquire
List 4
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Boy: Tales of Childhood
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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.
See Examples For:
At some participating businesses, fans will be able to acquire limited-edition merchandise and Laufey-themed specialty drinks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
The business-software company, which has been beset with AI disruption fears, jumped 18% after Reuters reported that private equity firm Silver Lake is in talks to acquire it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
More than 120,000 babies around the world acquire HIV each year.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026
It will also acquire the online business, and stores will continue to operate under their existing licensing.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
In this way Kaan would both acquire a dominant position in the Maya realm and destroy its enemy.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Goldman Sachs sees opportunity and acquires ETF company Neos.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
He encounters dangerous people but also acquires friends.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The research expands on decades of work exploring how the brain acquires new abilities.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026
Individuals can’t request debt relief because the nonprofit acquires bundled debt for thousands of people at once.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026
I say, therefore, that in completely new principalities, where there is a new prince, greater or lesser difficulty in maintaining them exists according to the greater or lesser virtue of the person who acquires them.
From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli
Janet Garrison, a dirt-bike-riding grandmother who taught information technology at the local community college, downloaded an app used by hunters to map the plots being acquired.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Opel was acquired in 2017 by France's Peugeot Group, which in turn merged with Fiat-Chrysler in 2021 to form Stellantis.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
He also did not notify them that he had acquired a new passport and two bank cards during his trip.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Last year, the company shut down Boss Fight Entertainment, one of the gaming studios it acquired in 2022.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Angeline had acquired, from Fishtail, some corn with red flecks in it and Mama put these seeds into the ground with a special blessing, curious to see what their growth would bring.
From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich
Walter, 66, chief executive of Chicago investment firm Guggenheim Partners, led a group that included another Guggenheim executive and Magic Johnson in acquiring the Dodgers for $2.15 billion in 2012.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
Archer Aviation stock surges after announcing it’s acquiring several of Boeing’s subsidiaries.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
The three firms together sit on 1.4 million acres of land—more than seven times the size of New York City—and are busy acquiring more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
There is a reason Ellison spent billions acquiring a legendary news brand.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
“In that case”—Mother sighed—“kindly refrain from acquiring any more houses for the time being, my little landlord.”
From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord
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.
