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accentuate

[ak-sen-choo-eyt]
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verb (used with object), ac·cen·tu·at·ed, ac·cen·tu·at·ing.
  1. to give emphasis or prominence to.
  2. to mark or pronounce with an accent.
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Origin of accentuate

1725–35; < Medieval Latin accentuātus intoned (past participle of accentuāre). See accent, -ate1
Related formso·ver·ac·cen·tu·ate, verb (used with object), o·ver·ac·cen·tu·at·ed, o·ver·ac·cen·tu·at·ing.re·ac·cen·tu·ate, verb (used with object), re·ac·cen·tu·at·ed, re·ac·cen·tu·at·ing.un·ac·cen·tu·at·ed, adjectivewell-ac·cen·tu·at·ed, adjective
Can be confusedaccent accentuate assent
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for accentuated

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • This feeling had been accentuated by the Ishmaelite life he had led from his puppyhood.

    White Fang

    Jack London

  • Accentuated forms of pathological masochism are, however, rare in women.

  • His air of weary indifference was accentuated, I could not help thinking, wilfully.

    Under Western Eyes

    Joseph Conrad

  • But I recognized that this was only the humming I had heard before, accentuated.

  • Probably it is natural; probably it is accentuated by your residence in feverish cities.

    My New Curate

    P.A. Sheehan

British Dictionary definitions for accentuated

accentuate

verb
  1. (tr) to stress or emphasize
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Derived Formsaccentuation, noun
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

Word Origin and History for accentuated

accentuate

v.

1731, from Medieval Latin accentuatus, past participle of accentuare "to accent," from Latin accentus (see accent (n.)). Originally "to pronounce with an accent;" meaning "emphasize" is recorded from 1865.

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

["Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive," 1944, music by Harold Arlen, lyrics by Johnny Mercer]

Related: Accentuated; accentuating.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper