gain

1 of 2

noun

ˈgān

Synonyms of gain next

: resources or advantage acquired or increased : profit

made substantial gains last year

: the act or process of acquiring something

: an increase in amount, magnitude, or degree

a gain in efficiency

: the increase (as of voltage or signal intensity) caused by an amplifier

especially : the ratio of output over input

: the signal-gathering ability of an antenna

gain

2 of 2

verb

gained; gaining; gains

transitive verb

: to acquire or get possession of usually by industry, merit, or craft

gain an advantage

he stood to gain a fortune

: to win in competition or conflict

the troops gained enemy territory

c(1)

: to arrive at : reach, attain

gained the river that night

(2)

: traverse, cover

gained 10 yards on the play

: to get by a natural development or process

gain strength

: to establish a specific relationship with

gain a friend

: to make an increase of (a specified amount)

gained three percent in the past month

: to increase in (a particular quality)

gain momentum

: to win to one's side : persuade

gain adherents to a cause

: to cause to be obtained or given : attract

gain attention

of a timepiece : to run fast by the amount of

the clock gains a minute a day

intransitive verb

: to get advantage : profit

hoped to gain by the deal

: increase

the day was gaining in warmth

: to increase in weight

: to improve in health or ability

of a timepiece : to run fast

: to get closer to something pursued

—usually used with on or upon

gainer noun

Phrases

gain ground

: to make progress

Example Sentences

Noun The medication can cause nausea and weight gain. attributed her recent weight gain to the medication she was taking Verb They stand to gain an advantage over their competitors by getting an early start. What do you hope to gain from this? gain control of the territory Investigators are trying to gain access to the group's financial records. We were unable to gain admission to the club. We need to gain a better understanding of the problem. They had nothing to lose and everything to gain. He first gained attention as a young writer. Her theories are slowly gaining acceptance. I took the job to gain experience. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The company is seeing momentum in streaming, with Peacock reporting more than 20 million subscribers in the latest quarter, in its strongest quarterly gain since the service’s launch in 2020. —

Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Mar. 2023 In 2021, when the total shareholder return of Zaslav’s company (then known as Discovery) declined by 22%, Zaslav’s compensation rocketed up to $246.6 million from $37.7 million the year before, a gain of 554%. —

Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2023 America’s Finest City saw its annual price gain drop to 1.6 percent in December, said the S&P Case-Shiller Indices released Tuesday. —

San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2023 As such, travelers coming from sea level might want to plan for an extra acclimatization day at the start of their trip, and factor in additional hiking time on trails with notable elevation gain. —

Emily Pennington, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Feb. 2023 Brexit should give anyone pause about breaking up existing political and economic unions for transitory political gain. —

Matt Ford, The New Republic, 25 Feb. 2023 Combined output is 204 horsepower, a gain of two horses over the outgoing hybrid. —

Mike Sutton, Car and Driver, 24 Feb. 2023 Afterward, Pierce accused the Republican supermajority that supported the amendment of pandering to the far right for political gain. —

Arika Herron, The Indianapolis Star, 23 Feb. 2023 Wakanda is also the source of vibranium, the indestructible material that Captain America's shield is made out of and criminals are looking to steal it for their own gain. —

Kori Williams, Seventeen, 16 Feb. 2023

Verb

That approval should be simple to gain, according to Poynter. —

Andrew Moreau, Arkansas Online, 4 Mar. 2023 Williamson ultimately failed to gain much momentum amid the field of two-dozen Democratic candidates and dropped out of the race before the nominating contests. —

Alexandra Hutzler, ABC News, 4 Mar. 2023 That’s why the two companies decided that a joint venture would be the best mechanism to gain an edge over rivals. —

Nicolas Goeldel, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2023 Seeking internet buzz to reach new audiences and markets has become a way for often emerging brands to use the runway as a stage to gain global attention. —

Lucy Maguire, Vogue, 3 Mar. 2023 Prosecutors argued Murdaugh carried out the killings to gain sympathy before the allegations came out. —

Sarah Lynch Baldwin, Allison Elyse Gualtieri, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2023 Working through the United Nations — as Blair and Secretary of State Colin Powell frequently urged — was necessary to gain international legitimacy and support. —

Mario Del Pero, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2023 South Korea’s Hybe, the agency behind boy band BTS, is attempting to gain control of one of its biggest rivals, SM Entertainment. —

Jacky Wong, WSJ, 2 Mar. 2023 Some analysts see Orban's holdout as ploy to gain concessions. —

John Bacon, USA TODAY, 2 Mar. 2023 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gain.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gain, borrowed from Anglo-French gain, gaigne, gaaing "tillage, winning, profit," derivative of gaainer, gaaigner "to till, secure (profit, advantage)" — more at gain entry 2

Note: See note at gain entry 2.

Verb

Middle English gaynen "to prevail against," borrowed from Anglo-French gaainer, gaaigner "to cultivate, till, secure (profit, advantage), capture, acquire, be victorious," going back to Old Low Franconian *waiđanjan, of uncertain meaning and origin

Note: The presumed Old Low Franconian verb *waiđanjan has no exact counterpart in neighboring Germanic languages, and given the diverse meanings of the French verb, hypotheses that explain it are all somewhat tenuous. The base has traditionally been taken to be that of Old High German weida "pasture," Old Saxon weiđa, from which a verb meaning "to pasture" was derived, which then hypothetically developed the sense "to cultivate, till" and further derived senses. Alternatively, the verb could be linked to Old High German weidenōn "to hunt," a derivative of weida "hunt, quantity of game taken, catch" (corresponding to Old English wāth "hunt, chase, wandering," Old Norse veiðr "catch, haul of fish"). In Middle English both the noun and verb are presumed to have crossed with borrowings of Old Norse gagn "advantage, victory." Early Modern English gain has acquired senses directly from Middle French and French gagner.

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler

The first known use of gain was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century

Cite this Entry

Style

“Gain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gain. Accessed 27 Mar. 2023.

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Kids Definition

gain

1 of 2 noun

ˈgān

: resources or advantage acquired or increased : profit

financial gains

: an increase in amount, size, or degree

a gain in weight

gain

2 of 2 verb

: to get possession of often by effort : earn

gain an advantage

: to win in competition or conflict

gain a victory

: to get by a natural development or process

gain strength

: to arrive at

the swimmer gained the shore

: to win to one's side : persuade

: to increase in

gain momentum

: to run fast

my watch gains a minute a day

: to get advantage : profit

hoped to gain from the deal

: increase entry 1 sense 1

the day was gaining in warmth

: to increase in weight

: to improve in health

gainer noun

Medical Definition

gain

intransitive verb

ˈgān

: to improve in health

the patient gained daily

Legal Definition

gain

noun

: an increase in value, capital, or amount compare loss

— capital gain

: a gain realized on the sale or exchange of a capital asset (as a stock or real estate)

— casualty gain

: a gain realized by an insured because property insurance benefits paid for a loss from a casualty or theft are greater than the adjusted value of the insured asset

— long-term capital gain

: a capital gain realized on the sale or exchange of an asset held for more than a specified period (as a year)

— ordinary gain

: a gain from the exchange or sale of an asset that is not capital

— short-term capital gain

: a capital gain realized on the sale or exchange of an asset held for less than a specified period (as a year) that is treated as ordinary income under federal income tax laws

plural, in the civil law of Louisiana : a class of community property that reflects the increase in property value contributed by the common skill or labor of the spouses

gain verb