2. The act of owning or recognized in a particular character
or relationship; recognition as regards the existence,
authority, truth, or genuineness.
Immediately upon the acknowledgment of the Christian
faith, the eunuch was baptized by Philip. --Hooker.
3. The owning of a benefit received; courteous recognition;
expression of thanks. --Shak.
4. Something given or done in return for a favor, message,
etc. --Smollett.
5. A declaration or avowal of one's own act, to give it legal
validity; as, the acknowledgment of a deed before a proper
officer. Also, the certificate of the officer attesting
such declaration.
{Acknowledgment money}, in some parts of England, a sum paid
by copyhold tenants, on the death of their landlords, as
an acknowledgment of their new lords. --Cowell.
Syn: Confession; concession; recognition; admission; avowal;
recognizance.