The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Acquire \Ac*quire"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Acquired; p. pr. &
   vb. n. Acquiring.] [L. acquirere, acquisitum; ad + quarere
   to seek for. In OE. was a verb aqueren, fr. the same, through
   OF. aquerre. See Quest..]
   To gain, usually by one's own exertions; to get as one's own;
   as, to acquire a title, riches, knowledge, skill, good or bad
   habits.
   [1913 Webster]

         No virtue is acquired in an instant, but step by step.
                                                  --Barrow.
   [1913 Webster]

         Descent is the title whereby a man, on the death of his
         ancestor, acquires his estate, by right of
         representation, as his heir at law.      --Blackstone.
   [1913 Webster]

   Syn: To obtain; gain; attain; procure; win; earn; secure. See
        Obtain.
        [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

acquire
    v 1: come into the possession of something concrete or abstract;
         "She got a lot of paintings from her uncle"; "They acquired
         a new pet"; "Get your results the next day"; "Get
         permission to take a few days off from work" [syn: get,
         acquire]
    2: take on a certain form, attribute, or aspect; "His voice took
       on a sad tone"; "The story took a new turn"; "he adopted an
       air of superiority"; "She assumed strange manners"; "The gods
       assume human or animal form in these fables" [syn: assume,
       acquire, adopt, take on, take]
    3: come to have or undergo a change of (physical features and
       attributes); "He grew a beard"; "The patient developed
       abdominal pains"; "I got funny spots all over my body";
       "Well-developed breasts" [syn: grow, develop, produce,
       get, acquire]
    4: locate (a moving entity) by means of a tracking system such
       as radar
    5: win something through one's efforts; "I acquired a passing
       knowledge of Chinese"; "Gain an understanding of
       international finance" [syn: acquire, win, gain] [ant:
       lose]
    6: gain knowledge or skills; "She learned dancing from her
       sister"; "I learned Sanskrit"; "Children acquire language at
       an amazing rate" [syn: learn, larn, acquire]
    7: gain through experience; "I acquired a strong aversion to
       television"; "Children must develop a sense of right and
       wrong"; "Dave developed leadership qualities in his new
       position"; "develop a passion for painting" [syn: develop,
       acquire, evolve]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

105 Moby Thesaurus words for "acquire":
   accept, accumulate, achieve, add, admit, amass, annex, assume, bag,
   be responsible for, be seized of, bring down, bring in, bring on,
   bring upon, buy, capture, catch, catch up, claim, clap hands on,
   clasp, claw, clench, clinch, clutch, collect, come by, come in for,
   come into, contract, corral, cumulate, derive, derive from,
   drag down, drain off, draw, draw down, draw from, draw off, earn,
   embrace, enter into possession, fall in with, fall into, gain,
   garner, get, get hold of, glom on to, grab, grab hold of, grapple,
   grasp, grip, gripe, harvest, have, have coming in, hug, incur,
   invite, knock down, land, lay hands on, lay hold of, loot, make,
   nail, net, nip, nip up, obtain, palm, partake, pick up, pillage,
   pocket, possess, procure, pull down, purchase, reach, reap,
   receive, run, sack, score, secure, seize, snap up, snatch, steal,
   take, take by assault, take by storm, take hold of, take in,
   take on, take over, take possession, welcome, whip up, win