accept

verb

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ac·cept | \ ik-ˈsept

, ak- also ek- \

accepted; accepting; accepts

Definition of accept

transitive verb

1a : to receive (something offered) willingly accept a gift

b : to be able or designed to take or hold (something applied or added) a surface that will not accept ink

2 : to give admittance or approval to accept her as one of the group

3a : to endure without protest or reaction accept poor living conditions

b : to regard as proper, normal, or inevitable an idea that is widely accepted

c : to recognize as true : believe refused to accept the explanation

4a : to make a favorable response to accept an offer

b : to agree to undertake (a responsibility) accept a job

5 : to assume an obligation to pay also : to take in payment we don't accept personal checks

6 of a deliberative body : to receive (a legislative report) officially

intransitive verb

: to receive favorably something offered —usually used with of a heart more disposed to accept of his— Jane Austen

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Phrases Containing accept Learn More About accept

Examples of accept in a Sentence

When Bess was born, my mother had a hard time accepting many of our parenting choices. — Kelly Coyle DiNorcia, Mothering, March & April 2008 Despite Alexander's general skepticism about speed measurements, he does accept the cheetah as probably the fastest known running species. The measurement he finds most reliable, 29 m/s (about 65 mph), comes from a 1997 record along a 200-meter course clocked by an experienced timekeeper for athletic races. — Susan Milius, Science News, 16 Aug. 2008 The Edinburgh Christ in the House of Martha and Mary doesn't look like a Vermeer, although its signature has been accepted as genuine. — James Fenton, New York Review of Books, 6 Nov. 2008 They offered him the job, and he accepted it. They offered him the job, and he accepted. The store doesn't accept credit cards. a surface that will not accept ink a computer program ready to accept commands They accepted some applications and rejected others. She's still trying to get her manuscript accepted for publication. They refused to accept his resignation. a word that has come to be accepted as standard This treatment is now accepted by many doctors. See More

Recent Examples on the Web Police arrested the boy, but the juvenile detention center would not accept him. — cleveland, 29 July 2022 Ryan does not waste any time, does not accept anything less than a hyper-fast tempo, finishing a play, getting the call and getting right back to the line of the scrimmage. — The Indianapolis Star, 28 July 2022 The military governor of North Kivu, Gen. Constant Ndima, told U.N.-sponsored Radio Okapi on Wednesday that while authorities understand the frustration of the people, the government cannot accept the level of violence. — Nicholas Bariyo, WSJ, 27 July 2022 Hulu does not accept issue, electoral, or political Ads through the Ad Manager Tool. — Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica, 26 July 2022 Faith in Zimbabwe’s currency is already so low that many retailers don’t accept it. — Farai Mutsaka, The Christian Science Monitor, 25 July 2022 Faith in Zimbabwe’s currency is already so low that many retailers don’t accept it. — BostonGlobe.com, 25 July 2022 Our pros point out that there are no additional order fees or tips on store delivery (the delivery associates do not accept tips and are paid an hourly rate). — Good Housekeeping, 22 July 2022 The Russian commander requested to be allowed to retreat without weapons back to his side but the Ukrainians did not accept that, Kryha said. — New York Times, 21 July 2022 See More

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

History and Etymology for accept

Middle English accepten "to receive graciously, favor, approve of, judge worthy," borrowed from Anglo-French accepter, borrowed from Medieval Latin acceptāre, going back to Latin, "to receive regularly, submit to, admit of," frequentative of accipere "to take, receive, accept, learn, interpret," from ad- ad- + capere "to take" — more at heave entry 1

Learn More About accept

Dictionary Entries Near accept

accentus

acceptable

Statistics for accept

Last Updated

3 Aug 2022

Cite this Entry

“Accept.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accept. Accessed 9 Aug. 2022.

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More Definitions for accept

verb

ac·cept | \ ik-ˈsept

, ak- \

accepted; accepting

Kids Definition of accept

1 : to receive or take willingly accept a gift accept as a member

2 : to agree to He accepted my invitation.

3 : to stop resisting accept change

4 : to admit deserving accept blame accept responsibility

transitive verb

ac·cept | \ ik-ˈsept, ak-

Legal Definition of accept

1a : to receive with consent accept a gift accept service

b : to assent to the receipt of and treat in such a way as to indicate ownership of accepted the shipment despite discovering defects in the merchandise — compare reject

Note: Under section 2-606(1) of the Uniform Commercial Code, a buyer accepts goods if: 1) he or she indicates to the seller after a reasonable opportunity to inspect them that he or she will keep them; 2) he or she fails to effectively reject them; 3) he or she acts in a way that is inconsistent with the seller's ownership of the goods.

2 : to make an affirmative or favorable response to specifically : to indicate by words or action one's assent to (an offer) and willingness to enter into a contract

Note: A contract is created when the offer is accepted.

3 : to assume orally, in writing, or by conduct an obligation to pay accepting a draft

4 of a deliberative body : to receive (a report) officially (as from a committee)

intransitive verb

1 : to receive favorably something offered —usually used with of no person…shall…accept of any present — U.S. Constitution art. I

2 : to receive and assume ownership of goods under section 2-606(1), buyer has accepted if he has done any of the acts described therein— J. J. White and R. S. Summers

Other Words from accept

acceptance \ ik-ˈsep-təns, ak-

\ noun

accepter or acceptor \ -tər

\ noun