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Enquire vs Acquire - What's the difference?

enquire | acquire |

As verbs the difference between enquire and acquire

is that enquire is to make an enquiry while acquire is to get.

enquire

English

Alternative forms

* inquire (chiefly US)

Verb

(enquir)
  • To make an enquiry.
  • He enquired about the availability of rental bicycles in the town.
  • (archaic) To ask about (something).
  • * (rfdate) (John Milton)
  • ''Having thus at length enquired the truth concerning Law and dispense.
  • * (rfdate) (Byron)
  • And all obey and few enquire his will.

    Usage notes

    (unreferenced) In the USA, inquire' is generally used in place of '''enquire'''. Where '''enquire''' is used (particularly in the UK), it means a non-official enquiry (such as to ask a question), whereas '''inquire''' is used in legal or government context where official transcripts are generated. In the USA, this distinction is not made and ' inquire is used generally.

    acquire

    English

    Verb

    (acquir)
  • To get.
  • To gain, usually by one's own exertions; to get as one's own, as, to acquire a title, riches, knowledge, skill, good or bad habits.
  • * (Isaac Barrow) (1630-1677)
  • No virtue is acquired in an instant, but step by step.
  • * (William Blackstone) (1723-1780)
  • Descent is the title whereby a man, on the death of his ancestor, acquires his estate, by right of representation, as his heir at law.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1922, author=(Michael Arlen), chapter=3/19/2, title= “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days
  • , passage=Ivor had acquired more than a mile of fishing rights with the house?; he was not at all a good fisherman, but one must do something?; one generally, however, banged a ball with a squash-racket against a wall.}}

    Synonyms

    * attain, earn, gain, obtain, procure, secure, win

    Derived terms

    * acquired taste