All 7 Uses of
attain
in
Crime and Punishment, by Dostoyevsky
- Since she has attained years of maturity, she has read other books of romantic tendency and of late she had read with great interest a book she got through Mr. Lebeziatnikov, Lewes' Physiology—do you know it?†
Chpt 1.2 *attained = gained or reached something with effort
- But that seemed utterly unattainable.†
Chpt 1.6unattainable = not able to be gained or reached with effortstandard prefix: The prefix "un-" in unattainable means not and reverses the meaning of attainable. This is the same pattern you see in words like unhappy, unknown, and unlucky.
- At the same time he recognised clearly that the dream which had fired his imagination was hopelessly unattainable—so unattainable that he felt positively ashamed of it, and he hastened to pass to the other more practical cares and difficulties bequeathed him by that "thrice accursed yesterday."†
Chpt 3.2
- At the same time he recognised clearly that the dream which had fired his imagination was hopelessly unattainable—so unattainable that he felt positively ashamed of it, and he hastened to pass to the other more practical cares and difficulties bequeathed him by that "thrice accursed yesterday."†
Chpt 3.2
- Oh, yes, some attain their ends in this life, and then...†
Chpt 3.5attain = gain or reach something with effort
- When we quarrelled, I usually held my tongue and did not irritate her and that gentlemanly conduct rarely failed to attain its object, it influenced her, it pleased her, indeed.†
Chpt 6.4
- But now I see again how foolish I was, for you can attain any position you like by your intellect and talent.†
Chpt 6.7
Definition:
to gain or reach something with effort