Definitions for acquire
əˈkwaɪərac·quire

Princeton's WordNet(3.11 / 10 votes)Rate this definition:

1. get, acquireverb

   come into the possession of something concrete or abstract

   "She got a lot of paintings from her uncle"; "They acquired a new pet"; "Get your results the next day"; "Get permission to take a few days off from work"

2. assume, acquire, adopt, take on, takeverb

   take on a certain form, attribute, or aspect

   "His voice took on a sad tone"; "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. grow, develop, produce, get, acquireverb

   come to have or undergo a change of (physical features and attributes)

   "He grew a beard"; "The patient developed abdominal pains"; "I got funny spots all over my body"; "Well-developed breasts"

4. acquireverb

   locate (a moving entity) by means of a tracking system such as radar

5. acquire, win, gainverb

   win something through one's efforts

   "I acquired a passing knowledge of Chinese"; "Gain an understanding of international finance"

6. learn, larn, acquireverb

   gain knowledge or skills

   "She learned dancing from her sister"; "I learned Sanskrit"; "Children acquire language at an amazing rate"

7. develop, acquire, evolveverb

   gain through experience

   "I acquired a strong aversion to television"; "Children must develop a sense of right and wrong"; "Dave developed leadership qualities in his new position"; "develop a passion for painting"

Wiktionary(4.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. acquireverb

   To get.

   Etymology: From aqueren, from aquerre, from adquaerere; ad + quaero. See quest.

2. acquireverb

   To gain, usually by one's own exertions; to get as one's own, as, to acquire a title, riches, knowledge, skill, good or bad habits.

   Etymology: From aqueren, from aquerre, from adquaerere; ad + quaero. See quest.

Webster Dictionary(3.33 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Acquireverb

   to gain, usually by one's own exertions; to get as one's own; as, to acquire a title, riches, knowledge, skill, good or bad habits

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Acquire

   Acquire is a board game designed by Sid Sackson. The game was originally published in 1962 by 3M as a part of their bookshelf games series. In most versions, the theme of the game is investing in hotel chains. In the 1990s Hasbro edition, the hotel chains were replaced by generic corporations, though the actual gameplay was unchanged. The game is currently published by Hasbro under the Avalon Hill brand, and the companies are once again hotel chains. The object of the game is to earn the most money by developing and merging hotel chains. When a chain in which a player owns stock is acquired by a larger chain, players earn money based on the size of the acquired chain. At the end of the game, all players liquidate their stock in order to determine which player has the most money.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Acquire

   ak-kwīr′, v.t. to gain: to attain to.—n. Acquirabil′ity.—adj. Acquir′able, that may be acquired.—ns. Acquire′ment, something learned or got by effort, rather than a gift of nature; Acquisi′tion, the act of acquiring: that which is acquired.—adj. Acquis′itive, desirous to acquire.—n. Acquis′itiveness, propensity to acquire—one of the phrenologists' so-called faculties, with its special organ. [O. Fr. aquerre—L. acquirĕre, -quisitum—ad, to, and quærĕre, to seek.]

Matched Categories

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British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'acquire' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #4430

2. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'acquire' in Verbs Frequency: #307

How to pronounce acquire?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say acquire in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of acquire in Chaldean Numerology is: 1

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of acquire in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of acquire in a Sentence

1. Alan Gottlieb:

   Defense Distributed appears caught in what appears to be a bureaucratic game of merry-go-round, the right to keep and bear arms includes the ability to acquire or create arms. The government is engaging in behavior that denies this company’s due process under the Fifth Amendment. We’re compelled to file this action because the bureaucracy is evidently playing games and it’s time for these agencies to behave.

2. Van Hees:

   There's no question that TI gets a first look at everything but they have a real rigid strategy in terms of what they expect for their return on invested capital. If it doesn't fit that box, they don't acquire it.

3. Sinan Ulgen:

   It serves Bahceli’s purpose more to see the HDP acquire cabinet positions under an election government, they want to be able to criticize AKP and Erdogan from the sidelines ... and use that in their election campaign. They actually want Erdogan to call early elections. That's the MHP's strategy I think.

4. Mercator Chief Executive Cormac Whelan:

   Mercator has an ambitious growth plan which is a mix of organic and acquisition-led growth, as we see opportunities in the market to acquire innovative technology and platforms we will be prone towards action.

5. William Brown:

   A number of factors ... had me convinced that this was the right time and the right company to acquire.

Popularity rank by frequency of use