American English pronunciation
How to pronounce attain
IPA transcription: [ə'teɪn]
Hear “attain” pronounced
[ə'teɪn]
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[ə'teɪn]
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[ə'teɪn]
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Verb
-
to gain with effort
“she achieved her goal despite setbacks”
-
reach a destination, either real or abstract
“We hit Detroit by noon”
“The water reached the doorstep”
“We barely made it to the finish line”
“I have to hit the MAC machine before the weekend starts”
-
reach a point in time, or a certain state or level
“The thermometer hit 100 degrees”
“This car can reach a speed of 140 miles per hour”
-
find unexpectedly
“the archeologists chanced upon an old tomb”
“she struck a goldmine”
“The hikers finally struck the main path to the lake”
Usage examples
- Field marshal is the five-star rank and highest attainable rank in the Indian Army.
- Juveniles generally attain a length of by November of their first year.
- He died before Hadrian and never attained the throne.
- For most who had attained this rank, it would be their last before retirement.
- The term denotes visible leisure for the sake of displaying and attaining social status.
- Best results were usually attained when firing in salvos against large ground targets.
- After its demise, the city would never attain its old glory again.
- This car can attain speeds up to one hundred miles per hour.
- Alex Higgins was said to have attained the same feat.
- The equality is attained for a Gaussian, as in the previous case.