Did you know?
When you accentuate something you put an “accent,” or emphasis, on it. There’s no need to stress out if you don’t know the word’s history, though; its journey into the English language was very straightforward. It comes from Latin accentus, meaning “accent” (which itself comes in part from cantus, meaning “song”), and since the early 18th century, its meanings haven’t changed much. The word was initially used as a synonym of the verb accent to mean “to pronounce with greater stress or force,” which is a small leap from today’s meaning of “to make something more noticeable; to emphasize.” One excellent way to remember not only how to pronounce accentuate but also its etymological connection to song is the classic (and helpfully titled) tune “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive,” by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer, which has been performed by such luminaries as Dinah Washington, Sam Cooke, and Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters.
Examples of accentuate in a Sentence
Matthew Korfhage, Wired News, 30 Apr. 2025
Spoelstra in his series and season post-mortem accentuated all this team has been through, and the team’s promising young stars.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2025
Just the act of exposing Smith to center field accentuates how far McCormick has fallen in the organizational hierarchy.
—Chandler Rome, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
The cabin is roomier thanks to the longer wheelbase, something only accentuated by the space’s minimalist styling.
—Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for accentuate
Cite this Entry
“Accentuate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accentuate. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
accentuate
verb
Share