accompany
Americanverb (used with object)
-
accompanies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
accompanied,
past participle, past
-
accompanying
present participle
-
to go along or in company with; join in action.
to accompany a friend on a walk.
-
to be or exist in association or company with.
Thunder accompanies lightning.
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to put in company with; cause to be or go along; associate (usually followed bywith ).
He accompanied his speech with gestures.
-
Music. to play or sing an accompaniment to or for.
verb (used without object)
-
accompanies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
accompanied,
past participle, past
-
accompanying
present participle
verb
-
(tr) to go along with, so as to be in company with or escort
-
to supplement
the food is accompanied with a very hot mango pickle
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(tr) to occur, coexist, or be associated with
-
to provide a musical accompaniment for (a performer)
Synonym Usage
Accompany, attend, convoy, escort mean to go along with someone (or something). To accompany is to go along as an associate on equal terms: to accompany a friend on a shopping trip. Attend implies going along with, usually to render service or perform duties: to attend one's employer on a business trip. To convoy is to accompany (especially ships) with an armed guard for protection: to convoy a fleet of merchant vessels. To escort is to accompany in order to protect, guard, honor, or show courtesy: to escort a visiting dignitary.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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accompanysimple
-
accompaniessimple
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have accompaniedperfect
-
has accompaniedperfect
-
am accompanyingprogressive
-
are accompanyingprogressive
-
is accompanyingprogressive
-
have been accompanyingperfect progressive
-
has been accompanyingperfect progressive
Past
-
accompaniedsimple
-
had accompaniedperfect
-
was accompanyingprogressive
-
were accompanyingprogressive
-
had been accompanyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of accompany
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English accompanye, from Middle French accompagnier; see ac-, company
Explanation
The verb accompany means to keep someone company, or to be their companion on a trip or journey. In a musical sense, accompany means to play background music for the lead singer or soloist. If you want your friend to keep you company on your way to the store, you could ask her to accompany you on the walk. Or, if you want your friend to play piano while you sing a song, you could ask her to accompany you on piano. Just don’t ask her to do both at the same time or your friend may not want to accompany you anywhere any longer.
Vocabulary lists containing accompany
The Circuit
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"Tribute to the Dog," Vocabulary from the speech
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"Lob's Girl" by Joan Aiken
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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:
Similar signals could accompany other short GRBs but may have gone unnoticed because earlier missions were not able to capture prompt emission at energies below the gamma-ray range.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026
Now it is looking to accompany its move upmarket by slashing costs.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Officials and supporters had readied talking points to accompany the definition.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Court documents show that the chaperone appointed by the court to accompany Anderson during his father's funeral is a relative of the prisoner.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
It is the Bible and the tradition of the Church which provides the textual testimony; the circumstances contextualize the testimony and accompany it.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
So on Air Force One, for example, or in the Oval Office, the White House press pool accompanies the president to those kinds of places, and when he travels, accompanies him.
From Slate ● Sep. 30, 2026
Police allege that someone was able to access the goods by showing a fake airway bill - a document that accompanies shipped items.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
“They seem to be especially triggered about my posts about Natalie Harp and how she accompanies the president everywhere.”
From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026
Their second-highest payroll accompanies the league’s second-worst record.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Robin’s wife, Carrie MacDonald, is his business partner, and she often accompanies him on safaris with clients.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
It’s obvious that there is a lot of money to be made, which will be accompanied by ongoing access to him and his family.
From Salon ● Oct. 10, 2026
Usually, she was accompanied by her husband or a campaign staffer, she told a local television station, but she left home by herself around 12:15 a.m. local time on Aug. 14.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The new series is accompanied by an original score from Hans Zimmer and Bleeding Fingers Music.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
On Wednesday, AFP accompanied dozens of campaigners from the Pacific and Australia's Torres Strait Islanders on a flotilla which sailed past the summit venue and urged leaders to "keep 1.5C alive".
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
When Farmer flew back to Lima, Bayona accompanied him to a small government health clinic next to Father Jack’s former church.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
The lengthy deployment took a toll on US military personnel on the Lincoln and accompanying warships.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
This recent divergence certainly appears to be a very positive omen, as you can see from the accompanying chart.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
“We took Labor Day literally this year,” Palvin wrote in the caption accompanying a photo of she and Sprouse holding their baby girl between them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
"This is the first drone," said the soldier accompanying us in south-western Yemen.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
He transformed back into the great black dog and walked with Harry and Dumbledore out of the office, accompanying them down a flight of stairs to the hospital wing.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
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.
