gain
To acquire possession of.
Verb 4 meanings
To acquire possession of.
“Looks like you’ve gained a new friend.”
To have or receive advantage or profit; to acquire gain; to grow rich; to advance in interest, health, or happiness; to make progress.
“The sick man gains daily.”
To come off winner or victor in; to be successful in; to obtain by competition.
“to gain a battle; to gain a case at law”
To increase.
Noun 4 meanings
The act of gaining; acquisition.
“People are more willing to take a risk to avoid a loss than to make a gain.”
The thing or things gained.
The factor by which a signal is multiplied.
A square or bevelled notch cut out of a girder, binding joist, or other timber which supports a floor beam, so as to receive the end of the floor beam.
Etymology
From Middle English gayn, gain, gein (“profit, advantage”), from Old Norse gagn (“benefit, advantage, use”), from Proto-Germanic *gagną, *gaganą (“gain, profit", literally "return”), from Proto-Germanic *gagana (“back, against, in return”), a reduplication of Proto-Germanic *ga- (“with, together”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm (“next to, at, with, along”).
Similar and opposite words
GAIN at a glance
GAIN has 4 letters and scores 5 points in Scrabble (G 2 + A 1 + I 1 + N 1) and 7 in Words With Friends, before board bonuses. It ranks #1,590 by how often it appears in everyday English. It is valid in ENABLE, NWL2023, Collins/SOWPODS.
Rhymes with gain
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