# acquaintance

/əˈkweɪntəns/ (US) · /ɐkwˈeɪntəns/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/acquaintance
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. a person you know

noun · CEFR B1

someone you know slightly, but who is not a close friend.

For teachers: a person with whom one is acquainted but who is not a member of one's intimate social circle.

- He is not a close friend, just a business acquaintance I met at a conference.
- While she has a vast network of professional acquaintances, she relies on a very small group of lifelong friends for personal support.

Usage: Countable noun.

### 2. the state of knowing someone

noun · CEFR B2

the state of knowing a person, usually not very well.

For teachers: the state of being acquainted with a person; often implies a level of familiarity that falls short of true friendship.

- Our acquaintance began when we worked in the same office ten years ago.
- Their brief acquaintance during the summer months was enough to establish a mutual respect that lasted throughout their careers.

Usage: Uncountable noun; often used with the preposition 'with'.

### 3. knowledge of a subject

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal

knowledge or experience of a particular subject or thing.

For teachers: personal knowledge or familiarity with a specific subject, field, or object.

- The job requires a good acquaintance with modern computer systems.
- The professor's thorough acquaintance with medieval manuscripts allowed him to spot the forgery almost immediately.

Usage: Usually follows the pattern 'acquaintance with'.

## Examples

- He is just an acquaintance, not a friend.
- She nodded to an acquaintance while waiting for the bus.
- In a small town, every stranger is eventually reduced to an acquaintance through repeated, polite encounters.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.