accompany

[uh-kuhm-puh-nee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR accompany ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), ac·com·pa·nied, ac·com·pa·ny·ing.

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.

to put in company with; cause to be or go along; associate (usually followed by with): He accompanied his speech with gestures.

Music. to play or sing an accompaniment to or for.

verb (used without object), ac·com·pa·nied, ac·com·pa·ny·ing.

to provide the musical accompaniment.

Origin of accompany

1425–75; late Middle English accompanye < Middle French accompagnier. See ac-, company

Related formsnon·ac·com·pa·ny·ing, adjectivere·ac·com·pa·ny, verb (used with object), re·ac·com·pa·nied, re·ac·com·pa·ny·ing.well-ac·com·pa·nied, adjective

Synonym study

1. 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.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for accompany

follow, guide, attend, escort, lead, add, characterize, spook, convoy, guard, consort, chaperon, squire, dog, drag, draft, conduct, date, usher, shadow

Examples from the Web for accompany

Contemporary Examples of accompany

He subsequently asked a reporter to accompany him as he dared to share his story with the police for the first time.
Victim: I Watched British MPs Rape and Murder Young Boys
Nico Hines
December 18, 2014
The coroner would also note the tiny hemorrhages that accompany strangulation.
Indiana Serial Killer’s Confession Was Just the Start
Michael Daly
October 21, 2014
His book openly and honestly explores the spiritual issues that accompany great suffering.
Book Bag: Reading Your Way Out Of Grief
Anna Whiston-Donaldson
October 16, 2014
And also, for what reason about 30 military vehicles that accompany the convoy have no plates on them.
Putin’s “Humanitarian” Convoy Nears Ukraine, APCs Cross in Secret
Anna Nemtsova
August 14, 2014
To accompany breakfast or lunch, there's hibiscus lavender tea or locally roasted Bumper Crop coffee.
Spaghetti for Breakfast?! Not So Crazy at This Idaho Farm Café
Jane & Michael Stern
August 4, 2014

Historical Examples of accompany

The laws of the country made it impossible to accompany her beloved husband.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
At midnight, Pericles came, to accompany Anaxagoras to Salamis.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
The sauce to use depends on the dessert that it is to accompany.
Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Vol. 4
Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences
He had felt relieved rather than disappointed when Yates refused to accompany him.
In the Midst of Alarms
Robert Barr
Captain Cole volunteered to accompany them with a dozen sowars.
The Story of the Malakand Field Force
Sir Winston S. Churchill

British Dictionary definitions for accompany

accompany

verb -nies, -nying or -nied

(tr) to go along with, so as to be in company with or escort

(tr foll by with) to supplementthe food is accompanied with a very hot mango pickle

(tr) to occur, coexist, or be associated with

to provide a musical accompaniment for (a performer)

Derived Formsaccompanier, noun

Word Origin for accompany

C15: from Old French accompaignier, from compaing companion 1

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 accompany

early 15c., "to be in company with," from Middle French accompagner, from Old French acompaignier (12c.) "take as a companion," from à "to" (see ad-) + compaignier, from compaign (see companion). Related: Accompanied; accompanying.