acquaintance

noun

(countable) A person or persons with whom one is acquainted.

(uncountable) A state of being acquainted with a person; originally indicating friendship, intimacy, but now suggesting a slight knowledge less deep than that of friendship; acquaintanceship.

(uncountable) Such people collectively; one's circle of acquaintances (with plural concord).

Personal knowledge (with a specific subject etc.).

Roots

cognoscoquaint- · Latin · know, recognize

Synonyms for acquaintance

friendn familiarityn colleaguen comraden companionn amigon fellown neighborn confidantn associateadj

Synonyms & related words for acquaintance

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of acquaintance — including friend, familiarity, colleague, comrade, companion, amigo. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to acquaintance

Explore words related to acquaintance — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include acquaintanceship, reacquaintance, conversance, conversancy, acquainted, schoolfriend, befriended, buddy. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for acquaintance

Common synonyms for acquaintance include friend, familiarity, colleague, comrade, companion, amigo, fellow, neighbor — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does acquaintance come from?

The word acquaintance breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root quaint-, from Latin cognosco (“know, recognize”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.