- present participle of accord.
according
Americanadjective
adjective
-
(foll by to) in proportion; in relation
salary will be according to age and experience
-
(foll by to) on the report (of); as stated (by)
-
(foll by to) in conformity (with); in accordance (with)
everything went according to plan
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(foll by as) depending (on whether)
-
not_standard dependent on
it's all according where you want to go
Etymology
Origin of according
Explanation
If someone says, "according to the weather man, it's going to rain," that means that the weather man is the source of the information. Like the word accord, according comes from the Old French acorder meaning "reconcile, agree, be in harmony." According and the word to seem to be in harmony, the one always followed by the other. The term according to can be used to attribute something reported — according to the news, the airports are closed (even though according to your friend, they're still open). It also refers to agreement with a plan. If you study according to your advisor's suggestions, you'll do well.
Vocabulary lists containing according
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade 11)
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SHSAT: Language of the Test
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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.
Maresca was forced to chop and change his defence again, withdrawing both Gvardiol and Marc Guehi at half-time because of injuries, according to the manager.
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
As of Sept. 30, Anthropic had $95.6 billion in cash on its balance sheet, according to its prospectus.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 7, 2026
It arrived with the subject line: “MESSAGE TO THE WEST,” according to local media reports, and gave the Irish news outlets 45 minutes to leave buildings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2026
Statewide, more than 4 million votes remain to be counted in this race, according to the Associated Press, which calculates the expected vote using returns and other data.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2026
But he was harmless, according to Pa. Jeb did not agree.
From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
