acquired acquired character in biology, a modification or change in an organ or tissue that is due to use, disuse, or environmental effects during an organism's lifetime.
an acquired taste originally (in the mid 19th century) a taste, as for a food or drink, which is gained by experience; more widely, a person or thing that one comes to like over time, despite initial feelings of dislike (often used ironically).

acquired (ă-kwyrd) adj. describing a condition or disorder contracted after birth and not attributable to hereditary causes. Compare congenital.