accelerate

verb

ac·cel·er·ate | \ -lə-ˌrāt

accelerated; accelerating

Definition of accelerate

intransitive verb

1 : to move faster : to gain speed The car slowly accelerated. The pace of change has accelerated in recent months.

2 : to progress from grade to grade more rapidly than usual : to follow a speeded-up educational program

transitive verb

1 : to bring about at an earlier time Circumstances accelerated their departure.

2 : to cause to move faster accelerated his steps also : to cause to undergo acceleration

3a : to hasten the progress or development of accelerate our efforts

b : increase accelerate food production

4a : to enable (a student) to complete a course in less than usual time

b : to speed up (something, such as a course of study)

Other Words from accelerate Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about accelerate

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Examples of accelerate in a Sentence

She stepped on the gas and the car accelerated. The plane accelerated down the runway. She stepped on the gas and accelerated the car. He says that cutting taxes will help to accelerate economic growth. The rate of economic growth has continued to accelerate.

Recent Examples on the Web

Although the tax-and-spend stimulus that Congress passed at the end of 2017 and the start of 2018 stoked a period of strong hiring and accelerating G.D.P. growth, the U.S. economy is now sailing into some rocky waters. — John Cassidy, The New Yorker, "Trump’s Top Economist Makes a Timely Exit," 4 June 2019 Perhaps that money could be put toward the all-new 2020 Toyota Supra, which accelerated from zero to 60 mph in just 3.8 seconds in our instrumented testing and overdelivered on its power rating during a dyno test. — Eric Stafford, Car and Driver, "Ford, Hyundai, and GM Headline List of Memorial Day Discounts for Military Service Members," 23 May 2019 Schnabel’s prices soared from $3,000 to $40,000 in two or three years, a process that accelerated in 1981, when the 30-year-old Boone charmed Castelli, 75, into giving Schnabel a serious look. — Town & Country, "Mary Boone Is Taking a Break," 18 Apr. 2019 Despite the increase in grocery delivery options, which only accelerated last year when Amazon acquired Whole Foods, delivery is still not the way most people get groceries. — Rachel Sugar, Vox, "With a superbarket, shopping isn’t a chore; it’s an experience.," 30 Nov. 2018 For those reasons, this year’s hikes have made the Fed the target of unusual public attacks from Trump — criticism that has accelerated with the past month’s sharp declines in the stock market. — Martin Crutsinger, The Seattle Times, "Powell: US economy and banks seem sturdy but face some risks," 28 Nov. 2018 Installing conservative justices has long been paramount to the GOP, a sentiment that only accelerated after the power of the court was on full display with the 2000 decision that ruled in favor of George W. Bush’s right to the presidency. — Washington Post, "Analysis: GOP’s long-term Supreme Court strategy pays off," 29 June 2018 The mere fact that a quadratic equation makes a reasonable fit means that the human is accelerating the whole time. — Rhett Allain, WIRED, "This Crazy Slide Is Either Evil or Funny," 17 June 2018 In schools, Uighur-language instruction is vanishing—another of the trends which have markedly accelerated under Mr Chen. — The Economist, "China has turned Xinjiang into a police state like no other," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'accelerate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for accelerate

borrowed from Latin accelerātus, past participle of accelerāre "to add speed to, hasten the occurrence of, go quickly," from ad- ad- + celerāre "to hasten," verbal derivative of celer "swift, speedy," perhaps going back to *keli-li-/ri-, derivative from the Indo-European base of Greek kélomai, kelésthai "urge, exhort," kelēt-, kélēs "swift horse, charger"