Meaning & use
attainment
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Meanings
noununcountable
The act of successfully reaching a goal or standard after effort.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: the attainment of independence.
Patterns
- the attainment of something
The attainment of fluency takes years of practice.
The treaty led to the attainment of peace.
Her attainment of the top grade surprised everyone.
nounusually pluralformal
A skill or qualification that a person has gained.
Grammar: Usually plural: her attainments.
Patterns
- someone's attainments
He was admired for his scientific attainments.
The school reports on each pupil's attainments.
Her musical attainments were remarkable for her age.
noununcountableBritish
The level of achievement a student has reached in school.
Grammar: Often found in education: educational attainment.
Patterns
- educational attainment
- attainment in something
Attainment in reading improved across the school.
Educational attainment varies between regions.
The report links parental income to attainment.
Word forms
| plural | attainments |
|---|
Common combinations
- educational attainment
- Educational attainment has risen steadily.
- attainment of a goal
- The attainment of her goal took five years.
- academic attainment
- Academic attainment is measured by exams.
- level of attainment
- The test shows each child's level of attainment.
- raise attainment
- The program aims to raise attainment in maths.
Synonyms and how they differ
- achievement
- Achievement is the broader everyday word for something accomplished, while attainment stresses reaching a particular level or goal.
- accomplishment
- Accomplishment suggests completing a task with skill, while attainment is more about reaching a target.
- acquisition
- Acquisition means getting something, such as a skill or an object, without implying a struggle.
- fulfillment
- Fulfillment has a feeling of satisfaction that attainment does not always carry.
Opposites
Word family
- attain verb
- to reach or achieve
- attainable adjective
- able to be achieved
- unattainable adjective
- impossible to reach
- attained adjective
- successfully reached
Commonly confused: attainment or attainder?
attainment vs attainder
Attainder is an old legal term for losing civil rights after a serious conviction and is unrelated to success.
Practice
Which phrase best fits the blank? 'Researchers compared ___ attainment across the country.'
Choose one answer.
Educational attainment is a standard phrase meaning the level of schooling completed. The other adjectives do not collocate with it.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “attainment”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.