ottenere

Ottenere is an Italian transitive verb meaning to obtain, acquire, or gain something, often through effort or achievement. It takes a direct object and is used for obtaining tangible items, permissions, results, or recognition, for example ottenere un visto, ottenere risultati, ottenere la fiducia, ottenere il permesso.

Etymology: the verb comes from Latin obtinēre, a combination of ob- “toward” and tenēre “to hold.” It has cognates in other Romance languages, such as French obtenir and Spanish obtener.

Conjugation and forms: ottenere is a regular -ere verb with notable irregularities in the present tense. Present indicative forms are: io ottengo, tu ottieni, lui ottiene, noi otteniamo, voi ottenete, loro ottengono. The past participle is ottenuto, used with avere in compound tenses: ho ottenuto, hai ottenuto, ha ottenuto, abbiamo ottenuto, avete ottenuto, hanno ottenuto. Other common tenses include the imperfect: ottenevo, ottenevi, otteneva, ottenevamo, ottenevate, ottenevano; and the future: otterrò, otterrai, otterrà, otterremo, otterrete, otterranno. The gerund is ottenendo.

Usage notes: Ottenere connota obtaining through effort, achievement, or formal processes, and is often contrasted with ricevere, which emphasizes receiving something that is given. Typical collocations include ottenere risultati, ottenere il consenso, ottenere il permesso, ottenere una laurea, ottenere un vantaggio. The past participle ottenuto also appears in passive constructions, e.g., Il documento è stato ottenuto. Derivatives include otte­nibile (obtainable).

See also: conseguire, acquisire, ottenere is commonly paired with verbs and noun phrases indicating aims, status, or permissions.