attainment

From attain +‎ -ment; compare Old French ataignement.

• IPA^(key): /əˈteɪnmənt/

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attainment (countable and uncountable, plural attainments)

1. The act of attaining; the act of arriving at or reaching; the act of obtaining by exertion or effort.

   Synonyms: accomplishment, acquisition, acquirement

   My attainment of proficiency in German was due to years upon years of study.

2. That which is attained, or obtained by exertion.

   Synonyms: accomplishment, acquisition, acquirement

   • 1860, National Preacher, volume 33, number 1, page 11:

     The scholar who had made so many attainments, knows now how small they were compared with what one glance into the spiritual glory has taught him.

   • 1972, Mortimer J. Adler, Charles Van Doren, How to Read a Book, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, →LCCN, page 17:

     The attainment of the skills of elementary reading occurred some time ago for almost all who read this book.

• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “attainment”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.