accrete

[uh-kreet]

verb (used without object)

accreted, accreting 

1. to grow together; adhere (usually followed byto ).

verb (used with object)

accreted, accreting 

1. to add, as by growth.

adjective

1. Botany.,  grown together.

accrete

/ əˈkriːt /

verb

1. to grow or cause to grow together; be or become fused

2. to make or become bigger, as by addition

Word History and Origins

Origin of accrete¹

First recorded in 1775–85; back formation from accretion

Word History and Origins

Origin of accrete¹

C18: back formation from _accretion

Example Sentences

"They are so dense that when they accrete material on their surface they can undergo runaway nuclear reactions, which we detect as novae."

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"We are seeing what material is accreting to build the planet and moons," added main lead author Gabriele Cugno of the University of Zürich and member of the National Center of Competence in Research PlanetS.

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Once it’s there, minerals begin to accrete around this core.

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Through the telescope, researchers were able to see signals from large amounts of gas that accumulate and accrete onto a mini-galaxy in the process of being built.

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In astronomy, this is known as "retrograde motion" and is a tipoff that an object was once "accreted," or drawn in from elsewhere.

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