obtain
v.-
1 to get or acquire (v.) B2 Upper Intermediate Formalto get something, especially by making an effort or following a process.
to acquire or procure something through effort, request, or formal procedure. Transitive — requires a direct object.
ExampleYou must obtain a permit from the city before you start building the fence.
ExampleThe researchers struggled to obtain the necessary data from the government, as the files were still classified for security reasons.
UsageOften used in administrative, legal, or academic contexts rather than casual conversation.
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2 to be true or in effect (v.) C1 Advanced Formal Academicto exist or be the situation that is currently happening.
to be prevalent, customary, or in force; to hold true in a specific context. Intransitive — does not take a direct object.
ExampleThe same strict rules obtain in this office as they did twenty years ago.
ExampleEconomists are debating whether these market conditions still obtain in a digital economy where traditional borders no longer limit trade.
UsageThis sense is always intransitive and typically appears in academic or philosophical writing.
Teacher's tipThis sense is much rarer than the 'to get' sense; learners should recognize it in formal texts but may prefer 'apply' or 'exist' in their own writing.
From Middle English obteinen, from Anglo-Norman obtenir, optiner et al., and Middle French obtenir, from Latin obtinēre (“to gain, achieve, succeed, possess”), from ob- + tenēre (“to hold”).
- Verbobtain
- Adjectiveobtainable