accrete
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
adjective
verb
-
to grow or cause to grow together; be or become fused
-
to make or become bigger, as by addition
Etymology
Origin of accrete
First recorded in 1775–85; back formation from accretion
Explanation
To accrete is to gradually gather into a pile or grow together into a mass. When tiny dust particles slowly accumulate under your bed, they may accrete into a big dust bunny. The word accrete describes how small particles or elements slowly come together to form a larger mass. This term is often used in science to explain processes like the formation of planets or stars, where bits of matter accrete and build up over time. You can also think of how snowflakes accumulate on the ground, creating a thick layer of snow. The word comes from the Latin accretus, which means "grown together," highlighting the natural process of accumulation in our universe.
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:
"They are so dense that when they accrete material on their surface they can undergo runaway nuclear reactions, which we detect as novae."
From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2025
Once it’s there, minerals begin to accrete around this core.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2024
“Essentially what will happen is that there’s an about 10-Jupiter-mass object that will form, and then that will accrete very rapidly,” Abel says.
From National Geographic ● Sep. 14, 2023
But when you accrete energy onto a supermassive black hole, a fraction of that energy actually goes into an outflow as a jet.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 22, 2023
If the ring were not so close to Saturn, this effect would not be so strong, and the particles could accrete, making small snowballs and eventually growing into satellites.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
"Instead, they may have accreted, or accumulated, a significant inventory of COMs at birth, providing a chemical foundation that could later interact with the liquid water in their interiors."
From Science Daily ● Mar. 1, 2026
These stories are now frequent enough to have accreted their own rituals of response and defense.
From Salon ● Jun. 30, 2023
The accreted material is usually made up of Hydrogen, but for older stars that lost their outer layer, it also can be Helium.
From Space Scoop ● Jun. 8, 2023
Over many years, as it grew into one of the city’s tent-pole institutions, the museum accreted some two dozen buildings in different historical styles, increasingly pieced together like a crazy quilt.
From New York Times ● Apr. 25, 2023
The X-rays are plausibly generated by friction in the disk of gas and dust accreted around Cyg X-l from its supergiant companion.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
"This is the first time we've caught a low-mass star actively accreting from another low-mass object."
From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026
An artist’s illustration of an accreting supermassive black hole.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2024
They would grow by accreting more gas, merge with other seeds, and pull in stars to form a galaxy around themselves.
From Science Magazine ● Aug. 22, 2023
I’m simplifying it, because we still don’t know exactly how jets are created from accreting black holes.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 22, 2023
But the matter accreting into a disk surrounding the black hole would be a sight worth remembering, in the unlikely case that you survived the trip.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
