Definition of acquire
acquired
;acquiring
transitive verb
1 : to get as one's own:a : to come into possession or control of often by unspecified means acquire property The team acquired three new players this year.b : to come to have as a new or added characteristic, trait, or ability (as by sustained effort or natural selection) acquire fluency in French bacteria that acquire tolerance to antibiotics
2 : to locate and hold (a desired object) in a detector acquire a target by radar
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Examples of acquire in a Sentence
The two ships were acquired by the navy after the war.
The team acquired three new players this year.
The old word has acquired a new meaning.
This apparently minor event has acquired increasing significance in recent weeks.
He is studying the way that language is acquired by children.
Recent Examples of acquire from the Web
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Methodist CEO Raymond Grady told the nearly 100-person audience that 37 potential buyers had expressed some interest in acquiring its hospitals.
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Japyassú’s paper defines cognition in terms of acquiring, manipulating and storing information.
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A United Nations expert panel said in a report last year that Soro acquired about 300 metric tons of weapons and ammunition in 2011 in the wake of the post-election crisis.
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These are among the insights to be gleaned from Mr. Rollins’s personal archive, which the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, part of the New York Public Library, has acquired.
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Swaminathan, who heads the Indian Council of Medical Research, said the three patients had not traveled overseas and had acquired the infection locally.
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Remember, the Sounders’ surge last season came on the heels of them acquiring forward Nicolas Lodeiro.
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Chances are, the Cubs shrewdly will acquire a veteran for the cost of a minor leaguer.
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First Bank of Alabama is acquiring Bank of Wedowee, giving the east Alabama bank a total of six locations.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'acquire'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of acquire
Middle English aqueren, from Anglo-French acquerre, from Latin acquirere, from ad- + quaerere to seek, obtain
First Known Use: 15th century
ACQUIRE Defined for English Language Learners
acquire
playDefinition of acquire for English Language Learners
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: to get (something) : to come to own (something) : to come to have (something)
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: to gain (a new skill, ability, etc.) usually by your own effort
ACQUIRE Defined for Kids
Medical Dictionary
acquire
playMedical Definition of acquire
acquired
;acquiring
: to come to have as a new or additional characteristic, trait, or ability (as by sustained effort, by mutation, or through environmental forces) a cognitive system…that is acquired in early childhood—Noam Chomsky bacteria that acquire tolerance to antibiotics insects that acquire resistance to insecticides
Law Dictionary
acquire
playLegal Definition of acquire
acquired
acquiring
: to come into possession, ownership, or control of : obtain as one's own the target's directors don't want the company to be acquired — R. C. Clark the court acquired jurisdiction
acquirer
alsoacquiror
\ə-ˈkwīr-ər\ nounLearn More about acquire
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See words that rhyme with acquire Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for acquire Spanish Central: Translation of acquire Nglish: Translation of acquire for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of acquire for Arabic speakers
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