accumulate

American  

[uh-kyoo-myuh-leyt] / əˈkyu myəˌleɪt /

verb (used with object)

accumulated, accumulating

1. to gather or collect, often in gradual degrees; heap up.

   to accumulate wealth.

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verb (used without object)

accumulated, accumulating

1. to gather into a heap, mass, cover, etc.; form a steadily increasing quantity.

   Snow accumulated in the driveway. His debts kept on accumulating.

accumulate British  

/ əˈkjuːmjʊˌleɪt /

verb

1. to gather or become gathered together in an increasing quantity; amass; collect

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Other Word Forms

• accumulable adjective
• accumulative adjective
• accumulatively adverb
• accumulativeness noun
• nonaccumulating adjective
• overaccumulate verb
• preaccumulate verb (used with object)
• reaccumulate verb
• superaccumulate verb (used without object)
• unaccumulable adjective
• unaccumulated adjective
• well-accumulated adjective

Etymology

Origin of accumulate

First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin accumulātus “heaped up,” past participle of accumulāre “to heap up,” from ac- ac- + cumul(us) “heap” ( cumulus ( def. ) ) + -āre, infinitive verb suffix

Example Sentences

As temperatures rise in spring, snow accumulated during winter melts and the runoff feeds river systems.

From BBC

“Investors are unlikely to accumulate duration exposure,” the rates strategist adds.

From The Wall Street Journal

Many U.S. teens accumulate sleep debt during the school week as they juggle academic demands, social activities, extracurricular commitments, and in many cases part-time jobs.

From Science Daily

Whether tactical victories accumulate into strategic success or merely postpone strategic reckoning, we cannot yet know.

From MarketWatch

Add a sink full of dishes from the night before, and it’s easy to see how this quiet pressure accumulates, nudging many evenings toward a resigned, pizza night it is.

From Salon

Related Words

• accrue
• acquire
• add to
• assemble
• collect
• compile
• concentrate
• expand
• gain
• grow
• hoard
• increase
• pile up
• rack up
• swell