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Acquired - 5 dictionary results

ac⋅quire

  [uh-kwahyuhr]
Use Acquired in a Sentence
–verb (used with object), -quired, -quir⋅ing.
1. to come into possession or ownership of; get as one's own: to acquire property.
2. to gain for oneself through one's actions or efforts: to acquire learning.
3. Linguistics. to achieve native or nativelike command of (a language or a linguistic rule or element).
4. Military. to locate and track (a moving target) with a detector, as radar.
Origin:
1400–50; < L acquīrere to add to one's possessions, acquire (ac- ac- + -quīrere, comb. form of quaerere to search for, obtain); r. late ME aquere < MF aquerre < L

Related forms:
ac⋅quir⋅a⋅ble, adjective
ac⋅quir⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun
ac⋅quir⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1. See get. 2. win, earn, attain; appropriate.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Acquired
ac·quire   (ə-kwīr')   
tr.v.   ac·quired, ac·quir·ing, ac·quires
  1. To gain possession of: acquire 100 shares of stock.
  2. To get by one's own efforts: acquire proficiency in math.
  3. To gain through experience; come by: acquired a growing dislike of television sitcoms.
  4. To locate (a moving object) with a tracking system, such as radar.

[Middle English acquere, from Old French aquerre, from Latin acquīrere, to add to : ad-, ad- + quaerere, to seek, get.]
ac·quir'a·ble adj., ac·quir'er n.
ac·quired   (ə-kwīrd')   
adj.  
  1. Of or relating to a disease, condition, or characteristic that is not congenital but develops after birth.
  2. Resulting from exposure to something, such as an antigen or antibiotic.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Main Entry: ac·quired
Function: adjective
1 : arising in response to the action of the environment on the organism (as in the use or disuse of an organ)<acquired characteristics> —compare GENETIC 2, HEREDITARY
2 : developed after birth <acquired heart murmurs> —compare CONGENITAL 2, FAMILIAL, HEREDITARY
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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acquired ac·quired (ə-kwīrd')
adj.

  1. Of or relating to a disease, condition, or characteristic that is not congenital but develops after birth.
  2. Developed in response to an antigen, as resistance to a disease by vaccination or previous infection.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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