Word
gotten
Phoneticsgot·ten, stress on the first syllable
US/ˈɡɑtən/
UK/ɡˈɒtən/
Definitions
01past participle of get
B1 · Intermediate American English
v. the form of 'get' used after 'have' to show you received or obtained something.
v. the past participle of 'get', used in North American English to denote the process of obtaining, becoming, or moving.
“I have gotten much better at playing the guitar since I started lessons.”
“By the time the rescue team arrived, the weather had gotten significantly worse, making the evacuation of the hikers nearly impossible.”
Usage
Used with the auxiliary verb 'have' to form the present perfect or past perfect tenses.
Pitfall
I have gotten a car.
I have got a car.
In British English, 'got' is the standard past participle. 'Gotten' is primarily used in American and Canadian English.
Teaching tip
In American English, 'have gotten' implies the process of acquiring, while 'have got' implies current possession. British English speakers almost exclusively use 'got' for both.
02obtained
C2 · Proficiency Formal · Literary
adj. something that has been gained or earned, often used in compound words.
adj. obtained or acquired; primarily used in compound adjectives or fixed legalistic phrases.
“The thief had to give back all his ill-gotten money to the bank.”
“The investigators spent months tracing the ill-gotten wealth through a complex network of offshore accounts and shell companies.”
Usage
Usually appears in compounds like 'ill-gotten'.
Teaching tip
This sense is rare in modern speech except for the fixed idiom 'ill-gotten gains'.
Confusables
Gotten is the standard past participle in American English for obtaining or becoming, while British English uses got for all past participle functions.
RememberUS: Gotten for getting; Got for having.
Etymology
Morphologically got + -en.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
VERB
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B1 PreliminaryIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.4.0–5.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 3.0–3.544–71TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.550–784
- Frequency
- Common
- Level
- B1 · Intermediate
- Updated
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englishreference.com/q/gotten