obtain

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

• transitive v. To succeed in gaining possession of as the result of planning or endeavor; acquire.
• intransitive v. To be established, accepted, or customary: "standards, proprieties that no longer obtain” ( Meg Greenfield).
• intransitive v. Archaic To succeed.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English

• transitive v. To hold; to keep; to possess.
• transitive v. To get hold of by effort; to gain possession of; to procure; to acquire, in any way.
• intransitive v. To gain or have a firm footing; to be recognized or established; to become prevalent or general; to prevail.
• intransitive v. To prevail; to succeed.

from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

• To get; procure; secure; acquire; gain: as, to obtain a month's leave of absence; to obtain riches.
• To attain; reach; arrive at.
• To attain or reach by endeavor; succeed in (reaching, receiving, or doing something); manage.
• Hence To achieve; win.
• To hold; keep; maintain possession of.
• Synonyms Attain, Obtain, Procure. See attain.
• To secure what one desires or strives for; prevail; succeed.
• To be common or customary; prevail or be established in practice; be in vogue; hold good; subsist; prevail: as, the custom still obtains in some country districts.
• To attain; come.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• v. receive a specified treatment (abstract)
• v. be valid, applicable, or true
• v. come into possession of