growth

American  

[grohth] / groʊθ /

noun

growths plural

1. the act or process, or a manner of growing; development; gradual increase.

   Synonyms:

   expansion, augmentation

   Antonyms:

   decrease, decline

2. size or stage of development.

   It hasn't yet reached its full growth.

3. completed development.

4. development from a simpler to a more complex stage.

   the growth of ritual forms.

5. development from another but related form or stage.

   the growth of the nation state.

6. something that has grown or developed by or as if by a natural process.

   a growth of stubborn weeds.

   Synonyms:

   outgrowth, result

7. Pathology. an abnormal increase in a mass of tissue, as a tumor.

   Synonyms:

   excrescence

8. origin; source; production.

   onions of English growth.

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adjective

1. of or denoting a business, industry, or equity security that grows or is expected to grow in value over a long period of time.

   a growth industry; a growth stock.

growth British  

/ ɡrəʊθ /

noun

1. the process or act of growing, esp in organisms following assimilation of food

2. an increase in size, number, significance, etc

3. something grown or growing

   a new growth of hair

4. a stage of development

5. any abnormal tissue, such as a tumour

6. (modifier) of, relating to, causing or characterized by growth

   a growth industry

   growth hormone

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growth Scientific  

/ grōth /

1. An increase in the size of an organism or part of an organism, usually as a result of an increase in the number of cells. Growth of an organism may stop at maturity, as in the case of humans and other mammals, or it may continue throughout life, as in many plants. In humans, certain body parts, like hair and nails, continue to grow throughout life.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pregrowth
  noun
• regrowth
  noun
• supergrowth
  noun
• antigrowth
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• growths
  plural

Etymology

Origin of growth

First recorded in 1550–60; see grow, -th ¹; probably cognate with Old Norse grōthr

Explanation

The noun growth is the process of something becoming bigger. If you mentioned the growth of your family, you might mean that babies were born or people got married, increasing your family's size. Growth is an increase in physical size, like the growth of a sapling into a mature tree. There are other kinds of growth, like your sister's personal growth since she started to meditate every day. Growth can also mean something that has grown, like a growth of stubble on your dad's face or a cancerous growth that needs to be removed surgically. The Old English root word is growan, "to grow or flourish."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

growth growths

Its 3% on-year production growth aligned with a more than 50% rise in oil prices from the same period a year earlier.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

They suffer from elevated nutrient levels, which can lead to the growth of algae, depriving fish and other aquatic life of oxygen.

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

The UK Government has backed expansion of regional airports to "drive economic growth".

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

In preclinical studies, the antibody stopped both tumor growth and metastatic spread in an aggressive form of prostate cancer.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026

The many strikes that characterized the year 1919 came at a time when American industry stood at the threshold of a long period of unprecedented growth and prosperity.

From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler

Steroids that reduce inflammation and suppress malignant growths.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026

These growths are usually benign and cause no immediate harm.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 13, 2026

Sloan is currently waiting for a mastectomy, which requires the removal or one or both of the breasts as a method of treating or preventing future cancer growths.

From BBC ● Feb. 25, 2026

The nurse said the doctor had successfully removed the growths and was sending them off for biopsies.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026

Here nothing lived, not even the leprous growths that feed on rottenness.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

Related Words

• advance
• advancement
• expansion
• gain
• hike
• improvement
• increase
• production
• prosperity
• rise
• success
• surge