obtain

Where does the word "obtain" come from? It comes from Latin obtinere, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

Obtain’s story begins in Latin: obtinere meant “to hold onto, to gain possession of.” To hold onto, to gain possession of, from ob- (toward) and tenere (to hold). It reached English by 1400s as obtain. Settled as the English word for getting or acquiring something. Today, obtain means to get or come to possess something, especially through effort.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient obtinere "to hold onto, to gain possession of", to hold onto, to gain possession of, from ob- (toward) and tenere (to hold).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1400s obtain "to get or acquire something", settled as the English word for getting or acquiring something.