ENGLISH
REFERENCE

obtains

v.
C1 Advanced US //əbˈteɪnz// UK //ɒbtˈeɪnz// ob·tains

v. to exist or be true in a particular situation. You use this when talking about rules, customs, or conditions that are currently in place.

v. to be prevalent, customary, or established in a specific context. Intransitive in this sense; does not take a direct object.


SIMPLE

The same rule obtains in every branch of the company.

CONTEXTUAL

While these customs were common in the past, a very different set of social norms obtains today.

COMPLEX

Legal scholars must determine whether the precedent established in the previous decade still obtains under the revised constitutional framework or if it has been rendered obsolete by recent legislation.

Synonyms
Usage

The verb is intransitive when meaning 'to be the case'. It is distinct from the transitive sense meaning 'to get', which is more common in lower-level English.

Pitfall

He obtains that the rule is trueThe rule obtainsIn the sense of 'being true' or 'existing', the verb is intransitive and cannot take an object or a 'that' clause.

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