accumulate

verb

ac·​cu·​mu·​late ə-ˈkyü-m(y)ə-ˌlāt 

accumulated; accumulating

transitive verb

: to gather or pile up especially little by little : amass

accumulate a fortune

intransitive verb

: to increase gradually in quantity or number

snow accumulating to a depth of several feet

Synonyms

• increase
• rise
• accelerate
• swell
• expand
• multiply

Examples of accumulate in a Sentence

Evidence of his guilt is accumulating.

the number of complaints about that mail order firm is really accumulating

Recent Examples on the Web

Since founding his hugely successful e-commerce company Amazon in 1994, Jeff Bezos has accumulated a net worth that warrants his title as the third richest man on the planet. —Diane J. Cho, People.com, 28 June 2025

Dryer vents tend to gradually accumulate hair, dust, and lint during normal operation. —Timothy Dale, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 June 2025

Now, Russian lawmakers explore Bitcoin reserves as sanctions protection, while Gulf Cooperation Council nations quietly build mining infrastructure to accumulate their own digital reserves. —Arafat Kabir, Forbes.com, 26 June 2025

The company kept her loan open and unpaid for 90 days, allowing the interest and fees to accumulate, nearly doubling the amount due to $1,700. —Adam Friedman, ProPublica, 26 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin accumulātus, past participle of accumulāre "to heap up, add to, increase," from ad- ad- + cumulāre "to gather into a heap" — more at cumulate

Note: In part a Latinization of Middle French accumuler.

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for accumulate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate
• ameliorate

Kids Definition

accumulate

verb

ac·​cu·​mu·​late ə-ˈkyü-myə-ˌlāt 

accumulated; accumulating

1

: to gather or pile up especially little by little : amass

accumulate a fortune

2

: to increase in quantity, number, or amount

rubbish accumulates quickly

Legal Definition

accumulate

verb

ac·​cu·​mu·​late

accumulated; accumulating

transitive verb

: to gather especially little by little

specifically : to add (income from a fund) back into the principal

intransitive verb

: to increase gradually in amount or number