cumulative

[kyoo-myuh-luh-tiv, -ley-tiv]

adjective

1. increasing or growing by accumulation or successive additions.

   the cumulative effect of one rejection after another.

2. formed by or resulting from accumulation or the addition of successive parts or elements.

3. of or relating to interest or dividends that, if not paid when due, become a prior claim for payment in the future.

   cumulative preferred stocks.

cumulative

/ ˈkjuːmjʊlətɪv /

adjective

1. growing in quantity, strength, or effect by successive additions or gradual steps

   cumulative pollution

2. gained by or resulting from a gradual building up

   cumulative benefits

3. finance

   1. (of preference shares) entitling the holder to receive any arrears of dividend before any dividend is distributed to ordinary shareholders

   2. (of dividends or interest) intended to be accumulated if not paid when due

4. statistics

   1. (of a frequency) including all values of a variable either below or above a specified value

   2. (of error) tending to increase as the sample size is increased

Other Word Forms

• cumulatively adverb
• cumulativeness noun
• uncumulative adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of cumulative¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; cumulate + -ive

Example Sentences

Stock sales exceeded stock purchases by $6 billion in the third quarter, he said, while calculating $183 billion in cumulative net sales.

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Stock sales exceeded stock purchases by $6 billion in the third quarter, he said, while calculating $183 billion in cumulative net sales.

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This may have its amusingly juvenile aspects in Capitol Hill bars after work, but it is the visible manifestation of a cumulative and self-reinforcing radicalization.

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As Newby finishes his third term, his cumulative effect on democracy and justice in North Carolina stands out in bold relief.

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Reality Labs, the division created to power that alternative universe, lost $4.4 billion last quarter, taking its cumulative red ink past $70 billion in less than five years.

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Related Words

• aggregate 
• increasing