Dictionary / achieve
achieve
- verb
- from Anglo-Norman
To carry out or conclude (something, as a task) successfully; to accomplish.
1 All current definitions
Every sense of “achieve” in current use, as recorded by Wiktionary. Older and obsolete senses are kept separately.
verb
- transitiveTo carry out or conclude (something, as a task) successfully; to accomplish.
to achieve one’s goals
- transitiveTo gain or obtain (a desired objective, result, etc.) through effort or skill; to succeed in attaining (an objective, result, etc.); to win.
So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein,—more, far more, will I achieve: treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.1831 October 31, Mary W[ollstonecraft] Shelley, chapter III, in Frankenstein: Or, The Modern Prometheus (Standard Novels; IX), 3rd edition, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 34:
- transitiveTo obtain (a physical thing); to get.
Show all the spoils by valiant kings achieved.1700, Matthew Prior, Carmen Seculare. for the Year 1700:
- intransitiveTo attain a goal; to succeed in something, now especially in academic performance; (generally) to make an effort; strive.
He could really achieve in school if he worked hard.
Older & obsolete senses (3)
- obsoletetransitiveTo end or finish (something); to terminate; (specifically, military) to win (a battle or war).
- archaicintransitiveliteraryFollowed by to: to attain a certain position, status, etc.
- intransitiveobsoleteTo come to an end; conclude, end; also, to result, to turn out; or (uncommon) to be affected by fate in a certain way.
Cross-check: WordNet senses (1)
- verbto gain with effort — also: accomplish, attain, reach
Synonyms: accomplish, acquire, attain, catch, earn, fulfill, gain, get, get one's hands on, land, obtain, reach
Antonyms: lose, miss
2 History of the word
The etymology, the path the word travelled, and the words built from it.
The word’s journey, newest to oldest:
- English (today)achieve
- Middle Englishachieven
- Anglo-Normanachever
- Anglo-Normaneither
From Middle English achieven, acheven (“to accomplish (something); to acquire or obtain (something); to carry out or finish (something); to succeed in (something); to happen, turn out”), from Anglo-Norman achever, achiever, Middle French achever, achiever, and Old French achever, achiever (“to accomplish (something); to finish (something); to succeed in (something)”) (modern French achever), and then from either of the following:
* Old French a- (prefix denoting addition or increase, or a change of state) + chief (“end; head”) (compare traire a chief (“to be finished”), venir a chief (“to accomplish (something)”); and Late Latin ad caput venire (“to complete (something)”)) + -er (a variant of -ier (suffix forming verbs). Chief is derived from Vulgar Latin capus, from Latin caput (“head”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *káput (“head”), possibly from *kap- (“head”).
* Late Latin *accapāre, the present active infinitive of *accapō (“to finish”), from Latin ad- (prefix meaning ‘to’) + *capum (from caput (“head”); see further above) + -ō (suffix forming regular first-conjugation verbs).
cognates
* Catalan acabar
* Late Latin achevare, acheviare (“to acknowledge feudal liability; to complete, end”)
* Old Occitan acabar (modern Occitan acabar)
* Portuguese acabar
* Spanish acabar
Derivatives — words built from “achieve”
Related terms
Want to go deeper? See also “achieve” on Etymonline ↗
3 Original language
Where “achieve” came from before it was English.
4 Original meaning
What the word meant at the oldest point the record reaches.
Wiktionary’s etymology does not give a separate meaning for the earliest form of “achieve”, so we don’t state one. The historical dictionary entry below shows how the word was understood in 1913.
Historical meaning — Webster’s 1913
A historical record, labelled as such: some of these senses are dated or have since shifted.
achieve v. t. [OE. acheven, OF. achever, achiever, F. achever, to finish; (L. ad) + OF. chief, F. chef, end, head, fr. L. caput head. See Chief.]
- To carry on to a final close; to bring out into a perfected state; to accomplish; to perform; -- as, to achieve a feat, an exploit, an enterprise.
- To obtain, or gain, as the result of exertion; to succeed in gaining; to win.
- To finish; to kill.
5 Use it with confidence
Model sentences from the sources, matched to the meaning they show. Read each one aloud, then make your own in the game.
verbMeaning: To carry out or conclude (something, as a task) successfully; to accomplish.
to achieve one’s goals
Hannah achieved her lifelong dream of winning a medal at the Olympics.
verbMeaning: To gain or obtain (a desired objective, result, etc.) through effort or skill; to succeed in attaining (an objective, result, etc.); to win.
So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein,—more, far more, will I achieve: treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.1831 October 31, Mary W[ollstonecraft] Shelley, chapter III, in Frankenstein: Or, The Modern Prometheus (Standard Novels; IX), 3rd edition, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 34:
So, through his soul who earnestly believeth, / Life from the universal Heart doth flow, / Whereby some conquest of the eternal Woe, / By instinct of God's nature, he achieveth: […]1842, James Russell Lowell, “[Sonnets.] Sonnet XXI. On Reading Wordsworth’s Sonnets in Defence of Capital Punishment.”, in Poems, Cambridge, Mass.: John Owen, published 1844, →OCLC, page 251:
verbMeaning: To obtain (a physical thing); to get.
Show all the spoils by valiant kings achieved.1700, Matthew Prior, Carmen Seculare. for the Year 1700:
verbMeaning: To attain a goal; to succeed in something, now especially in academic performance; (generally) to make an effort; strive.
He could really achieve in school if he worked hard.
Let us, then, be up and doing, / With a heart for any fate; / Still achieving, still pursuing, / Learn to labor and to wait.1838 October, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “A Psalm of Life. […]”, in Voices of the Night, Cambridge, Mass.: […] John Owen, published 1839, →OCLC, stanza 9, page 7:
verbMeaning: to gain with effort
she achieved her goal despite setbacks
Three steps to owning it
- Pick one meaning above and read its model sentence out loud.
- Say who or what the word is about in your own life, then build a sentence around that.
- Check it against the definition: would a careful reader understand exactly that meaning?
6 The mastery game
Play it here, or print it and do it with pen and paper. At the end you will know the meanings, history, origin and original meaning — and you will have used the word yourself.
Say it, then spell it
achieve
/əˈt͡ʃiːv/
Say the word out loud three times, slowly. Notice the stressed syllable. When you are ready, hide it and spell it from memory.
Activate Words · Word-mastery worksheet · Name: ______________________ Date: __________
achieve
/əˈt͡ʃiːv/ · verb
Step 1 — Say it and write it
Say “achieve” out loud three times. Then cover the word and write it three times from memory.
Step 2 — Know every meaning
Read each definition. Then write it again in your own words.
Step 3 — Which meaning is it?
“to achieve one’s goals”
Circle the meaning used.
“He could really achieve in school if he worked hard.”
Circle the meaning used.
Step 4 — History and origin
Write the word’s journey back in time (each language and form):
Write three words built from “achieve” and what each means:
Step 5 — Original meaning
Read the etymology on the page. What does it tell you about the word’s earlier meaning?
How does that original meaning connect to the meanings today?
Step 6 — Use it yourself
☐ I can explain its meanings ☐ I know its history ☐ I know its original language ☐ I know its original meaning ☐ I can use it confidently
Answer key — achieve
Which meaning, sentence 1: B. To carry out or conclude (something, as a task) successfully; to accomplish.
Which meaning, sentence 2: A. To attain a goal; to succeed in something, now especially in academic performance; (generally) to make an effort; strive.
Origin: D. Anglo-Norman (Anglo-Norman achever)
Journey: English achieve ← Middle English achieven ← Anglo-Norman achever ← Anglo-Norman either
Some derivatives: achievability, achievable, achievance, achieved, achievement, achiever, achieving, encheve
Etymology: From Middle English achieven, acheven (“to accomplish (something); to acquire or obtain (something); to carry out or finish (something); to succeed in (something); to happen, turn out”), from Anglo-Norman achever, achiever, Middle French achever, achiever, and Old French achever, achiever (“to accomplish (something); to finish (something); to succeed in (something)”) (modern French achever), and then from either of the following:
Sources: Wiktionary “achieve” (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/achieve#English), CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org; Princeton WordNet 3.0; Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913, public domain) via GCIDE. Worksheet from https://activatewords.com/w/achieve