accomplish
Americanverb (used with object)
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to bring to its goal or conclusion; carry out; perform; finish.
to accomplish one's mission.
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to complete (a distance or period of time).
to have accomplished the age of 70;
We accomplished the journey in little more than an hour.
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Archaic. to provide polish to; perfect.
verb
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to manage to do; achieve
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to conclude successfully; complete
Usage
What does accomplish mean? Accomplish means to carry out or finish an action—to complete what you set out to do. To accomplish a goal is to complete it. Accomplish is often (though not always) used in the context of completing a set goal—one that is planned or desired before it is accomplished. Accomplish is generally used in a positive way in the context of completing beneficial goals (though a person can accomplish bad things—many supervillains hope to accomplish a global takeover). The completion of a goal or anything accomplished can be called an accomplishment, which means about the same thing as achievement. Someone who has accomplished many impressive things in life or in their career can be described with the adjective accomplished. It’s especially used to indicate that a person is very experienced, skilled, and perhaps awarded in their field, as in an accomplished singer. Much less commonly, accomplish can mean to reach a destination or certain age, as in I never thought I would accomplish the age of 100. Example: I’m hoping to accomplish everything on my to-do list today.
Synonym Usage
See do 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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accomplishernoun
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preaccomplishverb (used with object)
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accomplishableadjective
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unaccomplishableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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accomplishsimple
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accomplishessimple
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have accomplishedperfect
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has accomplishedperfect
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am accomplishingprogressive
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are accomplishingprogressive
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is accomplishingprogressive
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have been accomplishingperfect progressive
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has been accomplishingperfect progressive
Past
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accomplishedsimple
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had accomplishedperfect
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was accomplishingprogressive
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were accomplishingprogressive
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had been accomplishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of accomplish
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French accompliss-, stem of acomplir, equivalent to a- ac- + complir, ultimately from Latin complēre “to fill”; see complete, -ish 2
Explanation
To accomplish something is to get it done. People usually accomplish things that are sources of pride — like goals or records. But people accomplish immoral acts as well — like scandals or cons. The verb accomplish also means to bring about or put into effect. The CEO stood before the employees and outlined all she expected to be accomplished in the next year. She ended her speech by saying, "If we are to accomplish this, we must all work together — and work hard — but the rewards if we succeed will be great both for the company and for those that work here. Thank you for your efforts!"
Vocabulary lists containing accomplish
List 1
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PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 5
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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:
He hasn’t spelled out how current interest rates will accomplish that.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
"We believe we will more than accomplish the evidentiary burden of probable cause at this point to hold David to answer on these three felony charges," Hochman told the press.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Anya says he asked her about her family, her interests, "what I was trying to accomplish in life, why I was doing modelling, all things that mattered for me".
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
But perhaps CXMT, bolstered by the deep pockets of Hefei’s municipal-investment arm, would be able to accomplish what GigaDevice couldn’t.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
Tante Jans believed that our welfare in the hereafter depended on how much we could accomplish here on earth.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Mr. Sheehan accomplishes here what might otherwise take hundreds of scholars to produce in a standard reference work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
Part of the issue is that much of the good that a president accomplishes occurs during the first year of a term—and is immediately priced in.
From Barron's ● Jan. 2, 2026
However, this tax no longer accomplishes what it once did.
From Salon ● Dec. 28, 2025
Yet, the human brain accomplishes this remarkable learning while consuming only about 20 watts of power, compared to the megawatts required by today's supercomputers.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2025
But when one of his precious sports teams accomplishes something, he has the banner made professionally, rolled up, and revealed in dramatic fashion in front of six hundred cheering kids.
From "Linked" by Gordon Korman
These were intelligent, accomplished people who built businesses, led large organizations, and accumulated substantial wealth.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 25, 2026
“What to Make of a Life” doesn’t have all the answers, but it suggests the right questions and offers a measure of reassurance that even the most accomplished people have faced similar challenges.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
“Having this piece that we’ve created be embraced by so many is a very accomplished feeling,” Burch said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
"Let us be proud of the work accomplished," said senator Laurent Duplomb.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
He insisted that what Socios en Salud had accomplished in Peru could be copied in other places, if there was the political will to do it.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
“What is keeping Tesla back from accomplishing these short-term goals that they’ve set for themselves?”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
That is formidable, but this book is meant to be definitive, and it succeeds in accomplishing that.
From Salon ● Apr. 14, 2026
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the U.S. was “ahead of schedule in accomplishing our mission.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026
“There are still a couple things to be tied up with the other 2 musics of the program but we are so close to accomplishing it!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026
“I am trying to suggest why I seem to be accomplishing so little....” he wrote.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
