acquiring
noun
Acquiring — the steady act of gaining possession of something new
Definition
The act of acquiring something; "I envied his talent for acquiring"; "he's much more interested in the getting than in the giving"
In depth
Acquiring is the act of obtaining or gaining possession of something, whether through purchase, effort, inheritance, or simple chance. The word describes the process itself, the movement by which something not previously held becomes, gradually or suddenly, one's own.
Origin
The word descends from Latin acquirere, to acquire or gain in addition, formed from ad- (to) and quaerere (to seek). That root sense of seeking remains embedded in the word: to acquire something is, etymologically, to have successfully sought and found it, the labor of pursuit folded quietly into the act of possession.
Usage examples
"I envied his talent for acquiring rare books at prices no one else seemed able to find."
"She had spent her career acquiring skills few of her colleagues thought worth the trouble."
"The company's strategy depended entirely on acquiring smaller competitors before they could grow into real rivals."
How to use it
Acquiring is neutral, versatile vocabulary across business, personal, and academic writing, useful wherever a writer wants to emphasize the process of gaining something rather than the simple fact of having it.
Related concepts
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