gain

1 of 2

noun

1
: resources or advantage acquired or increased : profit
made substantial gains last year
2
: the act or process of acquiring something
3
a
: an increase in amount, magnitude, or degree
a gain in efficiency
b
: the increase (as of voltage or signal intensity) caused by an amplifier
especially : the ratio of output over input
c
: the signal-gathering ability of an antenna

gain

2 of 2

verb

gained; gaining; gains

transitive verb

1
a
: to acquire or get possession of usually by industry, merit, or craft
gain an advantage
he stood to gain a fortune
b
: to win in competition or conflict
the troops gained enemy territory
c(1)
: to arrive at : reach, attain
gained the river that night
(2)
: traverse, cover
gained 10 yards on the play
d
: to get by a natural development or process
gain strength
e
: to establish a specific relationship with
gain a friend
2
a
: to make an increase of (a specified amount)
gained three percent in the past month
b
: to increase in (a particular quality)
gain momentum
3
: to win to one's side : persuade
gain adherents to a cause
4
: to cause to be obtained or given : attract
gain attention
5
of a timepiece : to run fast by the amount of
the clock gains a minute a day

intransitive verb

1
: to get advantage : profit
hoped to gain by the deal
2
a
: increase
the day was gaining in warmth
b
: to increase in weight
c
: to improve in health or ability
3
of a timepiece : to run fast
4
: to get closer to something pursued
usually used with on or upon
gainer noun
Phrases
gain ground
: to make progress

Examples of gain in a Sentence

Noun The medication can cause nausea and weight gain. attributed her recent weight gain to the medication she was taking Verb They stand to gain an advantage over their competitors by getting an early start. What do you hope to gain from this? gain control of the territory Investigators are trying to gain access to the group's financial records. We were unable to gain admission to the club. We need to gain a better understanding of the problem. They had nothing to lose and everything to gain. He first gained attention as a young writer. Her theories are slowly gaining acceptance. I took the job to gain experience.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Overall, the campus saw gains in California first-year applicants to 88,392 applications, up 4.1%, and transfers to 19,371, a 12.3% increase. Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024 Apple previously made a lot of gains during its launch period last year. Samantha Murphy Kelly, CNN, 5 Mar. 2024 Brands value consistency as a sign of commitment and reliability, essential for long-term partnerships that also grow in their financial gains over time. King Holder, Rolling Stone, 4 Mar. 2024 This is the Black experience, as many of our gains as a community historically come from the heroes who dared to boycott the bus or defund the police. Ken Makin, The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Mar. 2024 Over 10 years, there were still 9 percent losers — though the average result was an 80 percent gain. Jonathan Lansner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2024 However, strong performances from the insurer's investments and subsidiaries made up for the underwriting loss, allowing Blue Cross to end the year in the black with a net gain of $100 million, or 0.2% of revenue. Detroit Free Press, 1 Mar. 2024 This approach might lead to modest initial gains but significantly mitigates the risk of financial distress in unstable market conditions. Danny Kattan, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2024 Nvidia’s market value rose to $1.9 trillion on Thursday, a $250 billion one-day gain equal to 40% of Tesla’s market cap. Diane Brady, Fortune, 23 Feb. 2024
Verb
Some day soon or further off, synthetic narrators and actors might be commonplace and accepted without so much as a blink, but for now there is room for debate: What is lost and what is gained when a machine does the work of a human performer? Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Mar. 2024 But the move to Mexico and some other nations gained speed after then-President Trump in 2018 slapped large tariffs on a wide array of Chinese imports. Don Lee, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 Trump remains deeply unpopular in California, and Schiff has gained stature with anti-Trumpers for his leadership role in the House impeachments of the former president. David Lightman, Sacramento Bee, 7 Mar. 2024 Its Cartoon Network has gained traction among hard-to-reach young male consumers with a nighttime programming block known as Adult Swim. Brian Steinberg, Variety, 7 Mar. 2024 Ukraine Russia is gaining momentum in eastern Ukraine, and soldiers and civilians fear what may come next. Aj Willingham, CNN, 6 Mar. 2024 And as people seek more eco-friendly (and cheaper) products, the versatile pantry staple, which contains acetic acid and water, is gaining even more traction. Stacey Colino, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 The rumor gained such traction that the FBI was called on to investigate it, and the attorney general had to publicly repudiate the claim. Greg Daugherty, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Mar. 2024 Budding costume designers can work on 10-15 films a year, and gain experience in all facets of design through work in the theater, opera, musicals, dance, and themed entertainment. Cathy Whitlock, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gain, borrowed from Anglo-French gain, gaigne, gaaing "tillage, winning, profit," derivative of gaainer, gaaigner "to till, secure (profit, advantage)" — more at gain entry 2

Note: See note at gain entry 2.

Verb

Middle English gaynen "to prevail against," borrowed from Anglo-French gaainer, gaaigner "to cultivate, till, secure (profit, advantage), capture, acquire, be victorious," going back to Old Low Franconian *waiđanjan, of uncertain meaning and origin

Note: The presumed Old Low Franconian verb *waiđanjan has no exact counterpart in neighboring Germanic languages, and given the diverse meanings of the French verb, hypotheses that explain it are all somewhat tenuous. The base has traditionally been taken to be that of Old High German weida "pasture," Old Saxon weiđa, from which a verb meaning "to pasture" was derived, which then hypothetically developed the sense "to cultivate, till" and further derived senses. Alternatively, the verb could be linked to Old High German weidenōn "to hunt," a derivative of weida "hunt, quantity of game taken, catch" (corresponding to Old English wāth "hunt, chase, wandering," Old Norse veiðr "catch, haul of fish"). In Middle English both the noun and verb are presumed to have crossed with borrowings of Old Norse gagn "advantage, victory." Early Modern English gain has acquired senses directly from Middle French and French gagner.

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of gain was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near gain

Cite this Entry

“Gain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gain. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

gain

1 of 2 noun
1
: resources or advantage acquired or increased : profit
financial gains
2
: an increase in amount, size, or degree
a gain in weight

gain

2 of 2 verb
1
a
: to get possession of often by effort : earn
gain an advantage
b
: to win in competition or conflict
gain a victory
c
: to get by a natural development or process
gain strength
d
: to arrive at
the swimmer gained the shore
2
: to win to one's side : persuade
3
: to increase in
gain momentum
4
: to run fast
my watch gains a minute a day
5
: to get advantage : profit
hoped to gain from the deal
6
a
: increase entry 1 sense 1
the day was gaining in warmth
b
: to increase in weight
c
: to improve in health
gainer noun

Medical Definition

gain

intransitive verb
: to improve in health
the patient gained daily

Legal Definition

gain

noun
1
: an increase in value, capital, or amount compare loss
capital gain
: a gain realized on the sale or exchange of a capital asset (as a stock or real estate)
casualty gain
: a gain realized by an insured because property insurance benefits paid for a loss from a casualty or theft are greater than the adjusted value of the insured asset
long-term capital gain
: a capital gain realized on the sale or exchange of an asset held for more than a specified period (as a year)
ordinary gain
: a gain from the exchange or sale of an asset that is not capital
short-term capital gain
: a capital gain realized on the sale or exchange of an asset held for less than a specified period (as a year) that is treated as ordinary income under federal income tax laws
2
plural, in the civil law of Louisiana : a class of community property that reflects the increase in property value contributed by the common skill or labor of the spouses
gain verb

More from Merriam-Webster on gain

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