First Known Use: 14th century
Dictionary
acquaintance
noun ac·quain·tance \ə-ˈkwān-tən(t)s\
: someone who is known but who is not a close friend
: the state of knowing someone in a personal or social way : the state of knowing someone as an acquaintance
: knowledge about something
Full Definition of ACQUAINTANCE
1
a : the state of being acquainted b : personal knowledge : familiarity
2
a : the persons with whom one is acquainted <should auld acquaintance be forgot — Robert Burns> b : a person whom one knows but who is not a particularly close friend <a casual acquaintance>
— ac·quain·tance·ship \-ˌship\ noun
See acquaintance defined for English-language learners
See acquaintance defined for kids
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Examples of ACQUAINTANCE
- But Francis later found out that the dinner acquaintance who sweet-talked him got a thank-you check for three thousand pounds. —Julian Barnes, New Yorker, 20 Sept. 1993
- But all those qualities are so wrapped up in others that one could hardly ask for two men who are, at first acquaintance, more different. —Peter Garrison, Air & Space, October/November 1991
- A classical education, or at any rate a very extensive acquaintance with English literature, ancient and modern, appears to me quite indispensable for the person who would do any just to your clergyman; and I think I may boast myself to be, with all possible vanity, the most unlearned and uninformed female who ever dared to be an authoress. —Jane Austen, letter, 11 Dec. 1815
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Origin of ACQUAINTANCE
(see acquaint)
Related to ACQUAINTANCE
- Synonyms
- cognizance, familiarity
- Antonyms
- unfamiliarity
ACQUAINTANCESHIP Defined for Kids
acquaintance
noun ac·quain·tance \ə-ˈkwān-təns\
Definition of ACQUAINTANCE for Kids
1
: a person someone knows slightly
2
: personal knowledge <He has some acquaintance with car repair.>
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