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Synonyms

accumulate

American

[uh-kyoo-myuh-leyt] / əˈkju mjəˌleɪt /

verb (used with object)

to gather or collect, often in gradual degrees; heap up.

to accumulate wealth.

verb (used without object)

to gather into a heap, mass, cover, etc.; form a steadily increasing quantity.

Snow accumulated in the driveway. His debts kept on accumulating.

accumulate British

/ əˈkjuːmjʊˌleɪt /

verb

to gather or become gathered together in an increasing quantity; amass; collect

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

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Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

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Etymology

Origin of accumulate

First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin accumulātus “heaped up,” past participle of accumulāre “to heap up,” from ac- ac- + cumul(us) “heap” ( see cumulus ( def. )) + -āre, infinitive verb suffix

Explanation

To accumulate means to gather, usually in large quantities. Let's hope your boyfriend is not the type to accumulate girlfriends. The root of accumulate is cumulus which means "mound" or "heap." You might have heard of cumulus clouds, those big fluffy clouds that look like giant piles of whipped cream. Think of these heaping helpings of clouds when you think of accumulate. The money in your savings account accumulates interest, though these days you won't accumulate much wealth that way! Police accumulate evidence until they have enough to charge someone with a crime.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

accumulate accumulates accumulated accumulating

As the chapters accumulate, the reader gains a sense of the Jeff Beck that the authors describe as part genius, part unknowable eccentric.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

Scientists know that these systems can erupt more than once, but the processes that allow them to accumulate vast quantities of magma remain poorly understood.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

Small, calorie-dense foods consumed throughout the day, sugary drinks, too few fruit and vegetables and little understanding of how these habits accumulate over time.

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

Be sure you’re putting it in a high-yield savings account so it can accumulate as much interest as possible.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

Unfortunately in the 1970s no tests existed for determining how long such a deposit might have taken to accumulate.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

If treated right, peat accumulates "about a millimetre a year," Jones said.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

It accumulates as a sequence rather than arriving as a coup.

From Slate ● Jun. 30, 2026

Scientists have also long known that another protein called tau accumulates in the brains of Alzheimer's patients.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 19, 2026

Barclays emphasizes that gold’s key structural drivers — U.S. consumer-price inflation and central-bank buying — are “slow-moving variables whose influence accumulates over time.”

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 15, 2026

As snow accumulates, it begins to compact, forcing out the air between the snowflakes.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong

Concerns have been raised over the level of a debt accumulated by a council.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

The rest accumulated slowly and, for the most part, logically: lemon zest for brightness, bacon for savory crunch, avocado for cool richness.

From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026

When researchers genetically removed p58IPK from two different cell lines, misfolded proinsulin accumulated at higher levels.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026

Someone who has accumulated $2 million or more in retirement savings has demonstrated financial discipline and competence.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

As stains and stench accumulated, the restaurant’s manager built a chute on the roof and threatened to jettison the garbage directly onto Olmsted’s precious lawns.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

“That leaves providers in this space of providing services and accruing and accumulating debt without any idea of when those contracts are going to be executed and when contracts will be paid,” Maceri said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

"Not only that, evidence has been accumulating that it also raises the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and mental illness," says Kang Mo-yeol, professor of occupational medicine at the Catholic University of Korea.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

While retirement planning often focuses on accumulating assets, the researchers argue that advisers and retirees should also pay close attention to future liabilities, particularly the essential expenses that are almost certain to occur.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

In Alzheimer's disease and other tauopathies, tau proteins begin accumulating inside nerve cells.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 20, 2026

Shadows were accumulating on his arms as he spun.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023