advance

American  

[ad-vans, -vahns] / ædˈvæns, -ˈvɑns /

verb (used with object)

• advances,
  present (3rd person singular)
• advanced,
  past participle,  past
• advancing
  present participle

1. to move or bring forward.

   The general advanced his troops to the new position.

   Antonyms:

   withdraw

2. to bring into consideration or notice; suggest; propose.

   to advance reasons for a tax cut.

   Synonyms:

   offer, propound, adduce

   Antonyms:

   withdraw

3. to improve; further.

   to advance one's interests.

   Synonyms:

   promote, forward

4. to raise in rank; promote.

   The board of directors advanced him to president.

5. to raise in rate or amount; increase.

   to advance the price.

6. to bring forward in time; accelerate.

   to advance growth;

   to advance clocks one hour.

   Synonyms:

   speed up, hasten, quicken, force

7. to supply beforehand; furnish on credit or before goods are delivered or work is done.

8. to furnish as part of a stock or fund.

9. to supply or pay in expectation of reimbursement.

   They advanced her $5000 against future royalties.

   Synonyms:

   loan, lend

10. to schedule at a later time or date.

    to advance a meeting from early to late fall.

11. Informal. to do advance publicity for.

    to advance a rock singer's personal appearances;

    the most heavily advanced sports event in history.

12. Archaic. to raise, as a banner.

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verb (used without object)

• advances,
  present (3rd person singular)
• advanced,
  past participle,  past
• advancing
  present participle

1. to move or go forward; proceed.

   The troops advanced.

   Antonyms:

   retreat

2. to increase in quantity, value, price, etc..

   His stock advanced three points.

3. (of a color, form, etc., on a flat surface) to move toward or be perceived as moving toward an observer, especially as giving the illusion of space.

4. to improve or make progress.

   Synonyms:

   flourish, thrive, prosper

5. to grow or rise in importance, status, etc..

   to advance in rank.

   Antonyms:

   decrease

6. Informal. to provide publicity; do promotion.

   He was hired to advance for a best-selling author.

noun

• advances
  plural

1. a forward movement; progress in space.

   the advance of the troops to the border.

2. promotion; improvement in importance, rank, etc..

   his advance to the position of treasurer.

   Synonyms:

   advancement, growth

3. Usually advances.

   1. attempts at forming an acquaintanceship, reaching an agreement, or the like, made by one party.

   2. actions or words intended to be sexually inviting.

   Synonyms:

   tender, offer, proposal, overture

4. addition to price; rise in price.

   an advance on cottons.

5. Commerce.

   1. a giving beforehand; a furnishing of something before an equivalent is received.

      An advance on his next month's salary permitted him to pay his debt on time.

   2. the money or goods thus furnished.

      He received $100 as an advance against future delivery.

6. Journalism.

   1. copy prepared before the event it describes has occurred.

      The morning papers carried advances on the ceremony, which will take place tonight.

   2. a press release, wire-service dispatch, or the like, as one containing the text or partial text of a speech, sent to arrive in advance of the event to which it is related.

7. the leading body of an army.

   Synonyms:

   spearhead, van, vanguard, advance guard

8. Military. (formerly) the order or a signal to advance.

9. Informal.

   1. publicity done before the appearance of a noted person, a public event, etc..

      She was hired to do advance for the candidate.

   2. a person hired to do advance publicity for an event.

      He is regarded as the best advance in the business.

10. Automotive, Machinery. an adjustment made in the setting of the distributor of an internal-combustion engine to generate the spark for ignition in each cylinder earlier in the cycle.

11. Geology. a seaward movement of the shoreline.

adjective

1. going or placed before.

   an advance section of a train.

2. made or given ahead of time.

   an advance payment on a loan.

3. issued ahead of time.

   an advance copy of the president's speech.

4. having gone beyond others or beyond the average.

idioms

1. in advance of, in front of; before.

   Heralds walked in advance of the king.

2. in advance, ahead of time; beforehand.

   You must get your tickets in advance.

advance British  

/ ədˈvɑːns /

verb

1. to go or bring forward in position

2. (foll by on) to move (towards) in a threatening manner

3. (tr) to present for consideration; suggest

4. to bring or be brought to a further stage of development; improve; further

5. (tr) to cause (an event) to occur earlier

6. (tr) to supply (money, goods, etc) beforehand, either for a loan or as an initial payment

7. to increase (a price, value, rate of occurrence, etc) or (of a price, etc) to be increased

8. (intr) to improve one's position; be promoted

   he advanced rapidly in his job

9. archaic (tr) to promote in rank, status, or position

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noun

1. forward movement; progress in time or space

2. improvement; progress in development

3. commerce

   1. the supplying of commodities or funds before receipt of an agreed consideration

   2. the commodities or funds supplied in this manner

   3. ( as modifier )

      an advance supply

4. Also called: advance payment. a money payment made before it is legally due

   this is an advance on your salary

5. a loan of money

6. an increase in price, value, rate of occurrence, etc

7. a less common word for advancement

8. 1. beforehand

      payment in advance

   2. (foll by of) ahead in time or development

      ideas in advance of the time

9. (modifier) forward in position or time

   advance booking

   an advance warning

advance More Idioms  

1. see in advance; make advances.

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Synonym Usage

Advance, move on, proceed all imply movement forward. Advance applies to forward movement, especially toward an objective: to advance to a platform. Proceed emphasizes movement, as from one place to another, and often implies continuing after a halt: to proceed on one's journey. Move on is similar in meaning to proceed; it does not, however, imply a definite goal: The crowd was told to move on.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• advancer
  noun
• overadvance
  verb
• unadvancing
  adjective
• advancingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• advances
  plural

Participles

• advancing
  present
• advanced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• advance
  simple
• advances
  simple
• have advanced
  perfect
• has advanced
  perfect
• am advancing
  progressive
• are advancing
  progressive
• is advancing
  progressive
• have been advancing
  perfect progressive
• has been advancing
  perfect progressive

Past

• advanced
  simple
• had advanced
  perfect
• was advancing
  progressive
• were advancing
  progressive
• had been advancing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will advance
  simple
• will have advanced
  perfect
• will be advancing
  progressive
• will have been advancing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of advance

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English avauncen, from Anglo-French, Old French avanc(i)er, from Vulgar Latin abantiāre (unrecorded), verb derived from Late Latin abante “in front (of ),” from Latin ab “away from, off” + ante “before”; ad- by mistaking a- for a- ⁵ in the 16th century

Explanation

The experience of having a wild monkey advance on you is pretty scary. The verb advance means "move forward purposefully." When you move forward, you advance. You can advance a chess piece on a board, advance toward someone across a room, or observe an army as it advances into a country. Advance also means "make progress," as when you advance your knowledge of Spanish by traveling to Ecuador, or "to loan money," which a bank does by making an advance of a thousand dollars. Since the 1700s, to make advances has also meant to make romantic overtures or to flirt.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

advance advances advanced advancing

"While our aspiration to serve customers in India remains, we look forward to exploring several options to advance our presence in the market over the long term," Seven & i Holdings said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026

Israel requires foreign carriers to submit lists of inbound passengers and crew in advance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Hotel industry veterans note that if guests call in advance, many hotels are able to prepare guest rooms without artificial scents.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

They may act impulsively, be manipulative, or even outright lie to advance their careers - but how can you tell the difference between an unpleasant co-worker and someone displaying psychopathic traits?

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026

To advance from qualifying rounds to quarterfinals, semifinals to the finals, you have to win each bout.

From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

"Thrombectomy is one of the most significant advances in modern stroke medicine and can dramatically improve a patient's chances of recovery," he said.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

As artificial intelligence advances, Tomita said demand is growing for semiconductor technology and materials.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Chip firms led gains in Asia, with SK hynix and Samsung's advances lifting Seoul's market, while Tokyo's Nikkei rallied thanks to big gains in tech giants Kioxia, Advantest, Tokyo Electron and investor SoftBank.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

“Technology advances and so does police work, and LPRs are just the next step in that advancement,” he said.

From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026

In the usual experience of archaeologists, inventions are supposed to flow from mainlands to islands, and small peripheral societies aren’t supposed to contribute revolutionary advances to the rest of the world.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

The divide between decorated and plain pottery continued for centuries, raising another question: Why did local residents not simply learn the migrants' more advanced techniques?

From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026

In the Brooklyn era, the league champion advanced directly to the World Series.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

"The recent increases in space spending elsewhere in Europe matter," says Gabriele Piazza, an economist at the London School of Economics who researches government procurement of advanced technology.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury yield advanced to 5.310%, after touching a new two-decade high above 5.34% in afternoon trading.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Thirteen years later, and operating with the benefit of greatly advanced X-ray equipment, Price made the next breakthrough.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Force protection at Fairford is part of that, and advancing U.S. counterdrone technology will help.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

The argument they’re advancing, as I can tell, is constructed out of preemption vapors.

From Slate ● Oct. 5, 2026

At the closest checkpoint to the front line, we met some fighters who had just returned from positions high on the mountain, just a few hundred metres from advancing Houthis.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

The effort to digitally recover writing from Herculaneum's scrolls has been advancing for years.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026

Harry yelled, and still shooting Stunning Spells at the advancing goblins, he sprinted toward the blind dragon.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

Related Words

• advancement
• boost
• breakthrough
• development
• gain
• growth
• increase
• progress
• rise
• step