acquire
/əˈkwʌɪə
/verb [with object]
1Buy or obtain (an asset or object) for oneself: I managed to acquire all the books I needed...
- Instead, tax will become payable automatically 30 days after the date that the purchaser acquires the property or land.
- On the other side sit large investors who acquire supplier assets at an attractive price.
- The company has neither improved its financial indicators, nor acquired new assets.
Synonyms
obtain, come by, come to have, get, receive, gain, earn, win, come into, come in for, take possession of, take receipt of, be given;
buy, purchase, procure, possess oneself of, secure;
gather, collect, pick up, appropriate, amass, build up, hook, net, land;
achieve, attain
informal get one's hands on, get one's mitts on, get hold of, grab, bag, score, swing, nab, collar, cop
2Learn or develop (a skill, habit, or quality): I’ve acquired a taste for whisky...
- Most teachers recognise that pupils vary in the speed and manner in which they grasp new ideas and acquire skills.
- When children go to camp, they learn to be more independent and acquire social skills.
- They want to learn more, know more and acquire skills like any other individual in society.
2.1Come to have (a particular reputation) as a result of one’s behaviour or activities: he acquired a reputation for scrupulous honesty...
- Since the band's cultural rehabilitation, however, hasn't it acquired a certain cachet?
- The Illegal Eagles have progressed from playing the small local club circuit to acquiring a reputation for themselves at major concert venues.
- They are rapidly acquiring a reputation for producing accessible and uniquely powerful theatre.
Phrases
an acquired taste
Derivatives
acquirable
/ adjective ...- It's simply that these are the obvious, overt qualities or things that are, some think, acquirable.
- That's my main motive in this thread, to make people realise ‘talent’ is acquirable - it's under your control.
- ‘Consumers may find digital TVs a little bit more acquirable after retail prices drop in line with the tax cut,’ Lee said.
acquiree
- The merged institutions don't even approach the sum of the former market presence of the individual acquirees.
- Most mergers and acquisitions are about cost-cutting, and many are a sign of the failure of the acquirer to develop products and services that can compete with those of the acquiree.
- To control two of those variables, the bank moves all acquirees to Washington Mutual's technology and processes.
acquirer
/ noun ...- Preliminary discussions are underway with potential acquirers for all or parts of these activities.
- These state that acquirers of more than 1% or more of a target company have to be disclosed by midday the day after purchase.
- At its annual meeting last week, it confirmed it was conducting due diligence with a small number of potential acquirers, but would not be drawn on details.
Origin
Late Middle English acquere, from Old French aquerre, based on Latin acquirere 'get in addition', from ad- 'to' + quaerere 'seek'. The English spelling was modified (circa1600) by association with the Latin word.
This is from Latin acquirere ‘get in addition’ from ad- ‘to’ and quaerere ‘seek’. The late Middle English spelling was acquere, the change is an example of the many words which developed new spellings around 1600 to make them look more like their Latin originals, evidence of early, if misplaced, interest in word histories.