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acquisition

 - 7 dictionary results

ac⋅qui⋅si⋅tion

[ak-wuh-zish-uhn]
–noun
1. the act of acquiring or gaining possession: the acquisition of real estate.
2. something acquired; addition: a recent acquisition to the museum.
3. Linguistics. the act or process of achieving mastery of a language or a linguistic rule or element: child language acquisition; second language acquisition.

Origin:
1375–1425; ME adquisicioun, a(c)quisicion < L acquīsītiōn- (s. of acquīsītiō), equiv. to acquīsīt(us), ptp. of acquīrere to acquire + -iōn- -ion


ac⋅qui⋅si⋅tion⋅al, adjective
ac⋅quis⋅i⋅tor [uh-kwiz-i-ter] , noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ac·qui·si·tion   (āk'wĭ-zĭsh'ən)   
n.  
  1. The act of acquiring.

  2. Something acquired or gained: added two new acquisitions to my library.


[Middle English adquisicioun, attainment, from Latin acquisitiō, acquisitiōn-, from acquisitus, past participle of acquīrere, to acquire; see acquire.]
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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Word Origin & History

acquisition 
1387, "act of obtaining," from L. acquisitionem, from stem of acquirere "get in addition," from ad- "extra" + quærere "to seek to obtain" (see query). Meaning "thing obtained" is from 1477. Acquisitive "given to making acquisitions" is from 1846.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Financial Dictionary

Acquisition

When one company purchases a majority interest in the acquired.

Investopedia Commentary

Acquisitions can either be friendly or unfriendly. Friendly acquisitions occur when the target firm agrees to be acquired, unfriendly acquisitions don't have the same agreement from the target firm.

Related Links

The Wacky World of M&As
The Basics of Mergers and Acquisitions

See also: Acquisition Fee, Acquisition Premium, Hostile Takeover, Merger, Saturday Night Special, Takeover

Also spelled: Aquisition

Investopedia.com. Copyright © 1999-2005 - All rights reserved. Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc.
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Financial Dictionary

acquisition

The purchase of an asset such as a plant, a division, or even an entire company. For example, the Walt Disney Company made a major acquisition in 1996 when it purchased Capital Cities/ABC, Inc., in order to extend its reach in the entertainment industry.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: ac·qui·si·tion
Pronunciation: "a-kw&-'zi-sh&n
Function: noun
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
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

acquisition ac·qui·si·tion (āk'wĭ-zĭsh'ən)
n.
The empirical demonstration in psychology of an increase in the strength of the conditioned response in successive trials in which the conditioned and unconditioned stimuli are paired.

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