obtain
pronunciation
How to pronounce obtain in British English:
UK [əbˈteɪn]
How to pronounce obtain in American English:
US [əbˈteɪn]
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- Verb:
- come into possession of
- receive a specified treatment (abstract)
- be valid, applicable, or true
Word Origin
- obtain
- obtain: [15] Obtain is one of the large family of English words (attain, contain, continue, tenor, etc) that come ultimately from Latin tenēre ‘hold’. In this case its source, by way of Old French obtenir, was Latin obtinēre, a compound formed with the intensive prefix ob-, which denoted both ‘get possession of’ and ‘prevail, be established’.=> attain, contain, continue, tenor
- obtain (v.)
- early 15c., from Middle French obtenir "acquire, obtain" (14c.), from Latin obtinere "hold, hold fast, take hold of, get possession of, acquire," from ob "to" (though perhaps intensive in this case; see ob-) + tenere "to hold" (see tenet). Related: Obtained; obtaining.
Example
- 1. It takes six months to obtain a one-year licence .
- 2. Their intelligence that duggan would obtain a firearm proved correct .
- 3. What it costs amazon to produce or obtain it is irrelevant .
- 4. These conditions no longer obtain .
- 5. How do I obtain emergency contraception ?