- present participle of increase.
increasing
Americanadjective
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growing larger or greater; enlarging; augmenting.
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Mathematics. (of a function) having the property that for any two points in the domain such that one is larger than the other, the image of the larger point is greater than or equal to the image of the smaller point; nondecreasing.
Usage
What does increasing mean? Increasing is an adjective that means growing or rising—becoming greater or more in number, amount, size, or in some other way. It comes from the continuous tense (-ing form) of the verb increase, which means to become greater or more in number, amount, size, or in some other way, as in Our profits will increase as demand increases. The word increased can also be used as an adjective to describe things that have risen or grown, as in an increased appetite. Example: The increasing value of the dollar.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of increasing
Explanation
Increasing means getting bigger or expanding. You'll be glad to have an increasing income, but perhaps less glad to have an increasing pants size. The adjective increasing describes anything that grows or becomes greater. Increasing volume from your neighbor's radio will drive you crazy, since it's getting louder and louder. If your tiny school attracts increasing numbers of new students, it's likely that new teachers will need to be hired. Increasing comes from the verb increase, or grow, with its Latin root word, increscere, "to grow upon, grow over, swell, or grow into."
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.
It is likely that a relatively weak area of low pressure will drift northwards from France over the weekend increasing the chance that patchy rain will move across the UK.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
“The Treasury could announce decreasing long-end issuance, increasing long-end buybacks, or a combination of both.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
Washington also has been increasing economic pressure on Rwanda over its alleged backing of the armed M23 rebel group in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
Eating too much sodium can cause the body to retain additional fluid, increasing the pressure inside blood vessels.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026
Germany was incapable now of defending itself, and the continuing Allied blockade of German ports was causing increasing misery.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
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