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Acquire   /əkwˈaɪər/   Listen
Acquire

verb
(past & past part. acquired; pres. part. acquiring)
1.
Come into the possession of something concrete or abstract.  Synonym: get.  "They acquired a new pet" , "Get your results the next day" , "Get permission to take a few days off from work"
2.
Take on a certain form, attribute, or aspect.  Synonyms: adopt, assume, take, take on.  "The story took a new turn" , "He adopted an air of superiority" , "She assumed strange manners" , "The gods assume human or animal form in these fables"
3.
Come to have or undergo a change of (physical features and attributes).  Synonyms: develop, get, grow, produce.  "The patient developed abdominal pains" , "I got funny spots all over my body" , "Well-developed breasts"
4.
Locate (a moving entity) by means of a tracking system such as radar.
5.
Win something through one's efforts.  Synonyms: gain, win.  "Gain an understanding of international finance"
6.
Gain knowledge or skills.  Synonyms: larn, learn.  "I learned Sanskrit" , "Children acquire language at an amazing rate"
7.
Gain through experience.  Synonyms: develop, evolve.  "Children must develop a sense of right and wrong" , "Dave developed leadership qualities in his new position" , "Develop a passion for painting"



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"Acquire" Quotes from Famous Books



... powers and duties of magistrates and rulers, the Charter may justly be considered as unprovisional and imperfect. Yet it ought to be recollected that what is now its greatest defect was formerly a pre-eminent advantage, it being then highly important to the people to acquire the greatest latitude of authority with an exemption from British influence ...
— The Development of Religious Liberty in Connecticut • M. Louise Greene, Ph. D.
... only suggest that you acquire many accomplishments, and perfect yourself in music and languages, and that you seek for the attainment of all the subtle graces, which are, in the long run, more lasting as sources of happiness for a woman than mere beauty. It is a ...
— A Woman of the World - Her Counsel to Other People's Sons and Daughters • Ella Wheeler Wilcox
... pressure of work. He talked like this for about twenty minutes, and at last came to what he called the chief purport of his visit. He said he had in the course of his investigations, been fortunate enough to acquire important and exclusive knowledge with regard to the early life of Sir THOMAS CHUBSON and his chief supporters in Billsbury. "If it is published," he continued, "it will absolutely blast the prospects of Radicalism in Billsbury. I am not a grasping man, but ...
— Punch, Or The London Charivari, Vol. 100, May 16, 1891 • Various
... lawyers, to acquire applause, Try various arts to get a doubtful cause; Or, as a dancing master in a jigg, With various steps instructs the dancing prig; Or as a doctor writes you different bills; Or as a quack prescribes you different pills; Or as a fiddler plays more tunes than one; ...
— Miscellanies, Volume 2 (from Works, Volume 12) • Henry Fielding
... is the most humane, and most beneficial to the patient; soothing instead of coercing him during irritation; and encouraging him when tranquil to exert his faculties, in order to acquire ...
— Chapters in the History of the Insane in the British Isles • Daniel Hack Tuke


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