acquaint

verb

ac·​quaint ə-ˈkwānt How to pronounce acquaint (audio)
acquainted; acquainting; acquaints

transitive verb

1
: to cause to know personally
was acquainted with the mayor
2
: to make familiar : to cause to know firsthand
acquainting the new employees with their responsibilities
She took a few days to acquaint herself with the facts of the case.
Choose the Right Synonym for acquaint

inform, acquaint, apprise, notify mean to make one aware of something.

inform implies the imparting of knowledge especially of facts or occurrences.

informed us of the crisis

acquaint lays stress on introducing to or familiarizing with.

acquaint yourself with the keyboard

apprise implies communicating something of special interest or importance.

keep us apprised of the situation

notify implies sending notice of something requiring attention or demanding action.

notified the witness when to appear

Examples of acquaint in a Sentence

This class is designed to acquaint students with the region's most important writers. Mr. King spent the first week of the summer internship acquainting everyone with the new computers.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Members spend the first portion of the meetup getting acquainted before going to First Ward in uptown to hand out coffee donated by local coffee shops. Sunny Hubler, Charlotte Observer, 25 June 2025 These include getting acquainted with insurance benefits, setting aside funds for unexpected medical expenses and identifying trusted caregivers, decision makers and health care proxies. Manulife Singapore, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025 Speaking of which, here’s where audiences first became acquainted with Ewan McGregor, who alongside Kerry Fox and Christopher Eccleston serves up so much charismatic, 20-something rebellious swagger that he was destined to become a movie star. Tim Grierson, Vulture, 20 June 2025 As the climate warms and tick populations proliferate, there’s a good chance that in many parts of the U.S., you’ll get intimately acquainted with one this summer. Angela Haupt, Time, 30 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for acquaint

Word History

Etymology

Middle English acoynten, aqueynten, borrowed from Anglo-French acuinter, acointer, aqueinter, going back to Vulgar Latin *accognitāre, frequentative formation from the base of Latin accognōscere "to recognize," from ad- ad- + cognōscere "to get to know" — more at cognition, quaint

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of acquaint was in the 14th century

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Cite this Entry

“Acquaint.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acquaint. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

acquaint

verb
ac·​quaint ə-ˈkwānt How to pronounce acquaint (audio)
1
: to cause to know socially
became acquainted at school
2
: to cause to know firsthand : inform
acquaint her with her duties

More from Merriam-Webster on acquaint

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