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
Julia Teti, Footwear News, 26 Feb. 2026
To accentuate that point, White referenced a famous Disney movie about the power of self-belief.
—Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 26 Feb. 2026
To recreate her bold brow look, stick to a smooth, glowy base and nude or soft pink lip color, then accentuate your brows' natural shape while filling sparse spaces with a brow pencil.
—Nicole Catanese, InStyle, 25 Feb. 2026
Add white SunPatiens to accentuate the existing palette or vibrant-toned coleus to tease out the purple-red veins in the heucherella.
—Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 21 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for accentuate
Cite this Entry
“Accentuate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accentuate. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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accentuate
verb
