acquainted
/əˈkweɪntɪd/
adjective
Origin
Latin
adcognoscere — to come to know
Overview
Meaning Now
- Having knowledge of or experience with something.
- Knowing someone personally as a friend or associate, though not necessarily intimately.
Literal older meaning
made known to
Language path
Latin → Old French → Middle English → English
Earliest form
aqueynted
Earliest period
14th century
Journey
The word stems from the same Latin root 'cognoscere' that gave English 'cognition' and 'recognize'. In Middle English, 'quaint' originally meant 'known' or 'knowing' (derived from French 'coint'), before it evolved to describe something strangely or attractively unusual.
Evolution
- Classical Latin
adcognoscere
“to learn to know, recognize”
- Vulgar Latin
accognitare
“to make known”
Development of the stem
- Old French
acointier
“to make known, inform, associate with”
- Middle English
acqueynten
“to make familiar”
Connections
Word parts
ac-
prefix
to
quaint
root
known
-ed
ending
past participle suffix
Related across languages
French
accointance
acquaintance
Explore next
Related to acquainted
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.