advance
Americanverb (used with object)
-
advances,
present (3rd person singular)
-
advanced,
past participle, past
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advancing
present participle
-
to move or bring forward.
The general advanced his troops to the new position.
- Antonyms:
- withdraw
-
to bring into consideration or notice; suggest; propose.
to advance reasons for a tax cut.
- Antonyms:
- withdraw
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to improve; further.
to advance one's interests.
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to raise in rank; promote.
The board of directors advanced him to president.
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to raise in rate or amount; increase.
to advance the price.
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to bring forward in time; accelerate.
to advance growth;
to advance clocks one hour.
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to supply beforehand; furnish on credit or before goods are delivered or work is done.
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to furnish as part of a stock or fund.
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to supply or pay in expectation of reimbursement.
They advanced her $5000 against future royalties.
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to schedule at a later time or date.
to advance a meeting from early to late fall.
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Informal. to do advance publicity for.
to advance a rock singer's personal appearances;
the most heavily advanced sports event in history.
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Archaic. to raise, as a banner.
verb (used without object)
-
advances,
present (3rd person singular)
-
advanced,
past participle, past
-
advancing
present participle
-
to move or go forward; proceed.
The troops advanced.
- Antonyms:
- retreat
-
to increase in quantity, value, price, etc..
His stock advanced three points.
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(of a color, form, etc., on a flat surface) to move toward or be perceived as moving toward an observer, especially as giving the illusion of space.
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to improve or make progress.
-
to grow or rise in importance, status, etc..
to advance in rank.
- Antonyms:
- decrease
-
Informal. to provide publicity; do promotion.
He was hired to advance for a best-selling author.
noun
-
advances
plural
-
a forward movement; progress in space.
the advance of the troops to the border.
-
promotion; improvement in importance, rank, etc..
his advance to the position of treasurer.
- Synonyms:
- advancement, growth
-
Usually advances.
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attempts at forming an acquaintanceship, reaching an agreement, or the like, made by one party.
-
actions or words intended to be sexually inviting.
-
-
addition to price; rise in price.
an advance on cottons.
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Commerce.
-
a giving beforehand; a furnishing of something before an equivalent is received.
An advance on his next month's salary permitted him to pay his debt on time.
-
the money or goods thus furnished.
He received $100 as an advance against future delivery.
-
-
Journalism.
-
copy prepared before the event it describes has occurred.
The morning papers carried advances on the ceremony, which will take place tonight.
-
a press release, wire-service dispatch, or the like, as one containing the text or partial text of a speech, sent to arrive in advance of the event to which it is related.
-
-
the leading body of an army.
- Synonyms:
- spearhead, van, vanguard, advance guard
-
Military. (formerly) the order or a signal to advance.
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Informal.
-
publicity done before the appearance of a noted person, a public event, etc..
She was hired to do advance for the candidate.
-
a person hired to do advance publicity for an event.
He is regarded as the best advance in the business.
-
-
Automotive, Machinery. an adjustment made in the setting of the distributor of an internal-combustion engine to generate the spark for ignition in each cylinder earlier in the cycle.
-
Geology. a seaward movement of the shoreline.
adjective
-
going or placed before.
an advance section of a train.
-
made or given ahead of time.
an advance payment on a loan.
-
issued ahead of time.
an advance copy of the president's speech.
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having gone beyond others or beyond the average.
idioms
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in advance of, in front of; before.
Heralds walked in advance of the king.
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in advance, ahead of time; beforehand.
You must get your tickets in advance.
verb
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to go or bring forward in position
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(foll by on) to move (towards) in a threatening manner
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(tr) to present for consideration; suggest
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to bring or be brought to a further stage of development; improve; further
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(tr) to cause (an event) to occur earlier
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(tr) to supply (money, goods, etc) beforehand, either for a loan or as an initial payment
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to increase (a price, value, rate of occurrence, etc) or (of a price, etc) to be increased
-
(intr) to improve one's position; be promoted
he advanced rapidly in his job
-
archaic (tr) to promote in rank, status, or position
noun
-
forward movement; progress in time or space
-
improvement; progress in development
-
commerce
-
the supplying of commodities or funds before receipt of an agreed consideration
-
the commodities or funds supplied in this manner
-
( as modifier )
an advance supply
-
-
Also called: advance payment. a money payment made before it is legally due
this is an advance on your salary
-
a loan of money
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an increase in price, value, rate of occurrence, etc
-
a less common word for advancement
-
-
beforehand
payment in advance
-
(foll by of) ahead in time or development
ideas in advance of the time
-
-
(modifier) forward in position or time
advance booking
an advance warning
Synonym Usage
Advance, move on, proceed all imply movement forward. Advance applies to forward movement, especially toward an objective: to advance to a platform. Proceed emphasizes movement, as from one place to another, and often implies continuing after a halt: to proceed on one's journey. Move on is similar in meaning to proceed; it does not, however, imply a definite goal: The crowd was told to move on.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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advancesimple
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advancessimple
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have advancedperfect
-
has advancedperfect
-
am advancingprogressive
-
are advancingprogressive
-
is advancingprogressive
-
have been advancingperfect progressive
-
has been advancingperfect progressive
Past
-
advancedsimple
-
had advancedperfect
-
was advancingprogressive
-
were advancingprogressive
-
had been advancingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of advance
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English avauncen, from Anglo-French, Old French avanc(i)er, from Vulgar Latin abantiāre (unrecorded), verb derived from Late Latin abante “in front (of ),” from Latin ab “away from, off” + ante “before”; ad- by mistaking a- for a- 5 in the 16th century
Explanation
The experience of having a wild monkey advance on you is pretty scary. The verb advance means "move forward purposefully." When you move forward, you advance. You can advance a chess piece on a board, advance toward someone across a room, or observe an army as it advances into a country. Advance also means "make progress," as when you advance your knowledge of Spanish by traveling to Ecuador, or "to loan money," which a bank does by making an advance of a thousand dollars. Since the 1700s, to make advances has also meant to make romantic overtures or to flirt.
Vocabulary lists containing advance
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 2
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 2
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The ACT: The Language of the Test, List 2
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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:
While weather forecasts have been leaning toward warmer than normal, “temperature deviations from normal don’t yet appear sufficient to spur much of a price advance from here,” Ritterbusch & Associates says in a note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Another encouraging sign has been an improvement in market breadth, or the number of stocks and industries participating in the market’s advance.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
Mark said it was a "loads better" idea allowing uniform to be checked in advance.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Since its arrival in the Americas centuries ago, Aedes aegypti has conquered the Southern states, swaths of the Midwest, and much of California, and has begun to advance up the East Coast.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
The Lincolns had given the Fords enough advance notice for the proprietors to decorate and join together the two theater boxes—seven and eight—that, by removal of a partition, formed the president’s box at the theater.
From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson
"We acknowledge the industry made advances in safety, but the high injury and death rates persisted with no sign of improvement," Peters's spokesperson added.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
BeiDou’s advances “would enable Chinese forces to strike U.S. forces with greater range and precision,” the OTH report said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
“Every new channel, artist performance, live event, and creator collaboration advances our vision for the future of audio,” Witz said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
"As Kering advances through 2026, its objective remains to return to growth and improve margins" despite the uncertain geopolitical and macroeconomic environment, the company said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Nyame stands and advances toward me, eyes flaming.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Republican Amanda McKinney, a county commissioner who was endorsed by Trump, and Democrat John Duresky, a retired Air Force major, advanced to the general election.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
JT Erle started taking advanced classes for free college credit in high school.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
The report was written with the aid of several of the world's most advanced AI tools, including offerings from OpenAI, DeepSeek, Google and Anthropic, according to a disclosure.
From Barron's ● Aug. 4, 2026
“The world’s most advanced AI systems are controlled by a small number of companies, mainly in the United States and China,” the bank said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Rondon crouched down, taking cover in the thick vegetation, and quietly advanced toward the sound of the monkeys.
From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple
TAIPEI—Taiwan kicked off 10 days of military and civil defense exercises on Wednesday, advancing its strategy for deterring a Chinese invasion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
In the video, shared Tuesday on Facebook by Pan-Mass Challenge, the 76-year-old rocker praised the organization’s ongoing commitment to advancing cancer research and spoke about Scialfa’s battle with blood cancer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
People in their 30s and early 40s tend to generate steadily rising income if they’re advancing in their career.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
Research in the field is advancing quickly because terahertz frequencies, 1,000 times faster than used for electronic components, could offer powerful new ways to examine and manipulate matter.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026
He tries to beat my blade again, advancing quickly, but I slip my blade beneath his and score an easy touch.
From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Definitions 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.
