amass
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to gather for oneself; collect as one's own.
to amass a huge amount of money.
- Synonyms:
- accumulate
-
to collect into a mass or pile; gather.
He amassed his papers for his memoirs.
verb (used without object)
verb
-
(tr) to accumulate or collect (esp riches, etc)
-
to gather in a heap; bring together
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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amasssimple
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amassessimple
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have amassedperfect
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has amassedperfect
-
am amassingprogressive
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are amassingprogressive
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is amassingprogressive
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have been amassingperfect progressive
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has been amassingperfect progressive
Past
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amassedsimple
-
had amassedperfect
-
was amassingprogressive
-
were amassingprogressive
-
had been amassingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of amass
First recorded in 1475–85; from French amasser, equivalent to a- a- 5 ( def. ) + masse mass ( def. ) + -er, infinitive suffix
Explanation
Amass means bring together or assemble. It can be a real shock to enter a room and see your amassed friends shouting "Surprise!" Although the word amass should not be confused with "a mass," as in the thing you never want to hear has been found on your lung, they both derive from the Latin massa "lump." When you think about it, this makes sense. Whether soldiers or cancer cells, things that come together to form a whole — in this case, a tumor or an army — are amassed.
Vocabulary lists containing amass
Gimme, Gimme, Gimme
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Promises to Keep
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A Very Large Expanse of Sea
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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.
For instance, last month Manchester United brought Harry Amass back from a loan spell at Sheffield Wednesday and sent him to Norwich City instead.
From BBC • Feb. 5, 2026
And last month he questioned the performances of Harry Amass and Chido Obi, describing a "feeling of entitlement" at United.
From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026
“Our findings suggest that visitation restrictions may have inadvertently contributed to a secondary public health crisis, an epidemic of stress-related disorders among family members of ICU patients,” said Amass in a statement.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 26, 2022
Amass Four Thieves lotion offers a vibrant autumnal smell thanks to allspice, cinnamon, clove and eucalyptus.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 16, 2021
Amass, a-mas′, v.t. to gather in large quantity: to accumulate.—adjs.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
