accelerate

verb ac·cel·er·ate \ -lə-ˌrāt \

|Updated on: 9 Jun 2018

Examples: accelerate in a Sentence

Definition of accelerate

accelerated; accelerating

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

3 a : to hasten the progress or development of

accelerate our efforts

b : increase

accelerate food production

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

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

See accelerate defined for English-language learners

See accelerate defined for kids

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 of accelerate from the Web

The solution is a slot or air extractor through the hood (bonnet) that passes air up and accelerates it over the windscreen.

— jim resnick, Ars Technica, "“Change like we’ve not seen in decades”—high-end auto designers go electric," 2 June 2018
The number of marine heatwave days increased by 54 per cent from 1925 to 2016, with an accelerating trend since 1982.

— Smithsonian, "Ocean Heatwaves Are Getting Longer and More Intense," 2 June 2018
If anything, the company’s push to hire more people to review and take down posts has accelerated it.

— wendy lee, San Francisco Chronicle, "Facebook is outgrowing its hometown. Where will it go next?," 26 May 2018
The issue, discovered during a round of software testing, can occur if a vehicle is accelerating on command from active cruise control at the same time that there is an electric short in the system.

— eric limer, Popular Mechanics, "Fiat Chrysler Recalls 4.8 Million Vehicles Over Terrifying Cruise Control Flaw," 25 May 2018
That’s the key difference between Rippon and Norman: Consistent dominance vs. accelerated improvement.

— michelle r. martinelli, For The Win, "4 takeaways from DWTS athletes finale: Adam Rippon deserves all the glory," 22 May 2018
More than legitimate business is at risk: Sand is a finite natural resource which, like fossil fuels, takes centuries to form — and which humans are using at accelerating rates.

— Discover Magazine, "20 Things You Didn't Know About ... Sand," 18 May 2018
Yes, determination and skill have a way of accelerating comebacks.

— pat disabato, Daily Southtown, "Disabato: Mike Wisz's 'tough story to tell' takes him to North Central College to play baseball again," 1 May 2018
An officer, identified as Matt Steiner, was apparently hanging on to the car when Phillip put the car in reverse and accelerated.

— breanna edwards, The Root, "Florida Police Shoot and Kill Black Man, Then Go to Funeral Home in Attempt to Unlock His Phone Using His Fingerprint," 25 Apr. 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.

Origin and Etymology of 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"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1522

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year