acquisition

noun

ac·​qui·​si·​tion ˌa-kwə-ˈzi-shən 

plural acquisitions

1

: the act of acquiring something

acquisition of property

the acquisition of knowledge

2

: something or someone acquired or gained

The team announced two new acquisitions.

acquisitional

ˌa-kwə-ˈzi-sh(ə-)nəl 

adjective

acquisitor

ə-ˈkwi-zə-tər 

noun

Synonyms of acquisition

• accession

Examples of acquisition in a Sentence

Steven Schwartzman, the billionaire CEO of Blackstone, suffers no personal liquidity problems. But his firm, and others like it—have had to call off a series of proposed acquisitions because they can't get financing. —Daniel Gross, Newsweek, 3 Mar. 2008

The gifting of books, too, endured as a legacy of our book hunting. I quickly learned not to ask for newly published books as birthday or Christmas presents, since they provided my father with too little of a challenge. The measure of a gift's value was the amount of thought and effort that went into its acquisition. —Charles Mitchell, Bloomsbury Review, November/December 2002

McKnight and Ward, free-agent acquisitions who each have only one full season as a starter, have brought much-needed speed to the position. But rookie Chris Chambers, a second-round draft pick from Wisconsin, is the jewel. —Jeffri Chadiha, Sports Illustrated, 1 Oct. 2000

the country's acquisition of new ships

The big company's newest acquisition is a small chain of clothing stores.

The museum has put its latest acquisitions on display.

Recent Examples on the Web

If anything, the Jays’ pitching acquisition philosophy over the last five years has been to acquire durability in Cease, José Berríos, Gausman and Chris Bassitt. — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Gardiner will focus on using customer insights and data to strengthen the brand, accelerate customer acquisition and loyalty, and create a more personalized experience across stores and digital channels, the company indicated in a statement Monday. — David Moin, Footwear News, 8 Sep. 2026

Sisitsky came up doing healthcare buyouts and spent time integrating TPG’s 2023 acquisition of lender Angelo Gordon, which gave it a foothold in Wall Street’s credit rush. — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 8 Sep. 2026

Chomsky’s influential criticism of behaviorist explanations of language helped turn scientific attention toward the mental processes underlying language acquisition and use. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English adquysicyoun, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French acquisition, borrowed from Latin acquīsītiōn-, acquīsītiō, from acquīsī- (variant stem of acquīrere "to acquire") + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing acquisition

• special purpose acquisition company

Rhymes for acquisition

• abolition
• admonition
• ammunition
• apparition
• apposition
• coalition
• competition
• composition
• definition
• deglutition
• demolition
• deposition

Kids Definition

acquisition

noun

ac·​qui·​si·​tion ˌak-wə-ˈzish-ən 

1

: the act of acquiring

2

: something acquired

Legal Definition

acquisition

noun

ac·​qui·​si·​tion ˌa-kwə-ˈzi-shən 

1

: the act or action of acquiring

specifically : the obtaining of controlling interest in a company compare merger, takeover

2

: a thing gained or acquired