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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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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

For Dr. Rochon, the results point to an important communication gap that can develop gradually as medications accumulate.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026

Its position at the country’s southern maritime gateway and its proximity to the Caribbean and Latin America enabled it to accumulate military importance over decades as new military missions were layered onto that strategic foundation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Stuffing is made for weeknight dinners precisely because it is so good at absorbing the odds and ends that accumulate by midweek, without requiring another trip to the supermarket.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

Unlike fat stored under the skin, lipid droplets that accumulate within muscle cells can interfere with normal muscle function and make it harder for the body to efficiently use glucose and fatty acids.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 5, 2026

Does he really want to disagree with those who think that poets and artists stand on the shoulders of their predecessors, and accumulate knowledge about how to write poems and paint pictures?

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Atsukuni Tabata, 56, who works at an advertising company, said it was "scary" not knowing what AI would do as it "accumulates more and more data".

From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026

History accumulates faster than collective memory can accommodate it.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

Lenders may also offer the option to defer repayment until after graduation, but keep in mind that interest still accumulates during that time.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026

In a presidency good news comes and goes but bad news accumulates.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

But what about the thousands of everyday memories, the thousands of everyday reminders, that every person accumulates?

From "Every Day" by David Levithan

Even as the research has accumulated, that hasn’t translated to more people receiving the vaccine.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

And a clever system allows you to spend the rage you have accumulated to regenerate your health.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

Those cells accumulated in the liver and lungs and produced the type of toxicity the new strategy is intended to prevent.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026

My $1,330.13 was, in other words, the accumulated sticker price of my particular trail through the stacks.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

In 1775 Sir Percivall Pott declared that the scrotal cancer so common among chimney sweeps must be caused by the soot that accumulated on their bodies.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

Records tumbled in overheated basins like the Atlantic and Mediterranean and also the tropical Pacific, where the strongest El Nino weather pattern in the modern era is fast accumulating strength.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

If you take advantage of that $0 bill and skip paying the following month, daily interest will keep accumulating, wiping out the interest savings you were attempting to gain.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026

The researchers also saw less amyloid beta accumulating in cells, while nerve cells were better able to maintain their function and avoid dying.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

Such cells might eventually be given to people preventively, before those damaging aggregates begin accumulating.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026

After Bobby’s period of post-Reykjavik idleness had stretched to about a year, he decided that his first priority should be accumulating more money, always on his terms.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

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