- [countable]
a person that you know but who is not a close friend 认识的人；泛泛之交；熟人 Claire has a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. 克莱尔交游很广。 He's just a business acquaintance. 他只是业务上认识的人。 I bumped into an old acquaintance on the train. 我在火车上碰见一个老熟人。
Extra ExamplesTopics Family and relationshipsb2He was greeted as an old acquaintance. 他得到老朋友一样的接待。 I bumped into a casual acquaintance in town. 我在城里碰到个有点头之交的人。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- casual
- new
- close
- …
- bump into
- meet
- run into
- …
- friends and acquaintances
- [uncountable, countable] acquaintance (with somebody) (formal)
slight friendship （与某人）认识，略有交情 He hoped their acquaintance would develop further. 他希望他们的交情会进一步发展。 a man with whom I had a passing acquaintance 我不甚了解的一个男子 I first met Simon in 2008 and struck up an acquaintance with him. 我第一次见到西蒙是在2008年，并与他相识。
- [uncountable, countable] acquaintance with something (formal)
knowledge of something （对某事物的）了解 Extra Examplesher acquaintance with modern French philosophy 她对现代法国哲学的了解 They have little acquaintance with colloquial English. 他们对英语会话几乎一窍不通。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- nodding
- passing
- slight
- …
- make somebody’s/something’s
- strike up
- renew
- …
- of somebody’s acquaintance
- acquaintance with
- have an acquaintance with
- on close acquaintance
- on closer acquaintance
- …
Word OriginMiddle English (in the sense ‘mutual knowledge, being acquainted’): from Old French acointance, from acointier ‘make known’, from late Latin accognitare, from Latin accognoscere, from ad- ‘to’ + cognoscere ‘come to know’.
Idioms
have a nodding acquaintance with somebody/something
to only know somebody/something slightly 与…有点头之交；对…略知一二
make somebody’s acquaintance | make the acquaintance of somebody
of your acquaintance
on first acquaintance