advance

verb ad·vance \ əd-ˈvan(t)s \

|Updated on: 20 Jun 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: advance in a Sentence

Definition of advance

advanced; advancing

transitive verb

1 : to accelerate the growth or progress of

advance a cause

2 : to bring or move forward

advance a pawn

3 : to raise to a higher rank

was advanced from clerk to assistant manager

4 archaic : to lift up : raise

5 : to bring forward in time; especially : to make earlier

advance the date of the meeting

6 : to bring forward for notice, consideration, or acceptance : propose

advance an idea

7 : to supply or furnish in expectation of repayment

advance a loan

8 : to raise in rate : increase

advance the rent

intransitive verb

1 : to move forward : proceed

an advancing army

2 : to make progress : increase

advance in age

3 : to rise in rank, position, or importance

advance through the ranks

4 : to rise in rate or price

advancing wages

—

advancer

noun

See advance defined for English-language learners

See advance defined for kids

Examples of advance in a Sentence

The car advanced slowly down the street.
The sun slowly advanced across the sky.
She opened the door and advanced cautiously into the room.
advance the hands of a clock
The film is advanced by an electric motor.
The team advanced the ball steadily down the field.
Our understanding of this disease has advanced rapidly in recent years.
The team did not advance beyond the first round of the play-offs.
The company tries to keep up with advancing technology.
As he advanced in age and stature he advanced in knowledge.

Recent Examples of advance from the Web

The genesis of the idea is a good example of the way in which advances in one field of science can lead to new developments in other, apparently unrelated fields.

— The Economist, "Submarine cables could be repurposed as earthquake detectors," 16 June 2018
People once thought that mental deterioration and memory problems automatically came with advancing age.

— jan burns, Houston Chronicle, "Activities, life choices can help keep memory sharp," 15 June 2018
Fletcher ended up in first place in the District 4 primary and will advance to the fall runoff with former District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, a Republican, who came in second.

— michael smolens, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Labor leader Kasparian hobbled by election results, union rift," 15 June 2018
Schultz draws large town hall audiences advancing with vision and hope rather than angry finger-pointing slogans.

— jeffrey sonnenfeld, Fortune, "Why CEOs Make Great Politicians," 14 June 2018
That's why we're pumped about the soon-to-come vivoactive 3 advanced sleep monitoring system.

— anna hecht, CNN Underscored, "Garmin releases GPS smartwatch that holds up to 500 songs," 13 June 2018
Since signing with the San Diego Padres on June 16, 2015, the left-handed hitter has progressed, advancing through Single-A the past three seasons before starting with Double-A San Antonio to start the 2018 campaign.

— jeremy carranco, San Antonio Express-News, "Austin Allen leading offensive attack for surging Missions," 10 June 2018
The Saturday morning meeting was reportedly on the topic of women's empowerment and advancing gender equality.

— krystin arneson, Glamour, "Donald Trump Walked in Late to a Women's Empowerment Breakfast at the G7," 10 June 2018
Younger, more fashion-forward gunners like Nick Young and Russell Westbrook eked out victories, while Banana Republic big man Kevin Love and GQ cover dude James Harden advanced easily.

— the editors of gq, GQ, "The 2018 NBA Style Showdown: Vote Now for the League's Best-Dressed Player in Round 2," 5 June 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of advance

Middle English advauncen, alteration (with initial a- taken as assimilated form of Latin ad- ad-) of avauncen, borrowed from Anglo-French avancer, going back to Vulgar Latin *abantiāre, verbal derivative of Latin abante "before, in front," from ab- ab- + ante "before" — more at ante-

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1538

in the meaning defined at sense 2

See Words from the same year

advance Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of advance

advance, promote, forward, further mean to help (someone or something) to move ahead. advance stresses effective assisting in hastening a process or bringing about a desired end.

- advance the cause of peace

promote suggests an encouraging or fostering and may denote an increase in status or rank.

- a campaign to promote better health

forward implies an impetus forcing something ahead.

- a wage increase would forward productivity

further suggests a removing of obstacles in the way of a desired advance.

- used the marriage to further his career

advance

noun

Definition of advance

1 : a moving forward

halted the enemy's advances

2 a : progress in development

… mistaking material advance for spiritual enrichment.
—H. J. Laski

b : a progressive step : improvement

an advance in medical technique

3 : a rise in price, value, or amount

The workers won wage advances.

4 : a first step or approach made

Her attitude discouraged all advances.

5 : a provision of something (such as money or goods) before a return is received

I need an advance on my salary.

; also : the money or goods supplied

received a $100,000 advance on his new book

— in advance

1 : to, toward, or in a place or position ahead

sent scouts out in advance

2 : before a deadline or an anticipated event

made reservations in advance

— in advance of

: ahead of

made preparations several days in advance of her arrival

See advance defined for English-language learners

Examples of advance in a Sentence

trying to halt the enemy's advance
trying to halt the enemy's advances
a big advance in technology
The new system represents a considerable advance over the old one.
There have been few advances made in the treatment of this disease.
There has been little advance made in the treatment of this disease.
The workers won wage advances.
a yearlong advance in stock prices

Recent Examples of advance from the Web

The contract is poised for the first weekly advance in a month.

— grant smith, Houston Chronicle, "Oil set for loss as OPEC supply clash looms," 15 June 2018
Futile efforts to slow the ash borer’s advance have been happening here for more than a decade, ever since the insects first appeared in 2009 and began leaving their fatal, meandering scars on the prized trees.

— frank fitzpatrick, Philly.com, "Ashes of an industry: A Pennsylvania tradition is dying, one baseball bat at a time," 14 June 2018
The government is introducing legislation to encourage the planting of more slow-growing native species, such as cork trees, holm oaks, or chestnut trees, which are more resilient to flames and can slow the advance of wildfires.

— barry hatton, The Christian Science Monitor, "Portugal races to protect its citizens against wildfires – with goats," 13 June 2018
The top two vote-getters in the primary advance to the Nov. 6 election.

— luke money, latimes.com, "Keirstead and Rouda still locked in tight race for spot on fall ballot in 48th Congressional District," 13 June 2018
The straight answer is no, but there are ways to still take advance of the deals without having to commit to a full year membership.

— lindsey murray, Good Housekeeping, "All the Amazon Prime Day 2018 Details We Know So Far," 12 June 2018
Against Mine’ For Nadeau, the unwanted advances from Perlstein had an immediate effect.

— kathleen megan, courant.com, "For More Than A Decade CCSU Administrators Took Little Action Despite Reports Of Harassment By Professor," 12 June 2018
All eight teams in the tourney advance to the Thursday quarterfinal games.

— gary bedore, kansascity, "KU freshman Quentin Grimes scores 20 points as Team USA routs Puerto Rico, 115-71," 12 June 2018
But a war would mean devastating casualties, including of American troops in South Korea, and American cities would also be at risk of suffering a nuclear strike because of the North’s recent advances.

— motoko rich, New York Times, "Nixon Did It. Why Not Trump? Crib Notes for a Presidential Summit," 11 June 2018

Origin and Etymology of advance

derivative of ¹advance (or borrowed from French avance, going back to Middle French, noun derivative of avancer)

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1570

in the meaning defined at sense 3

See Words from the same year

advance Synonyms

Synonyms

advancement, breakthrough, enhancement, improvement, refinement;

Antonyms

setback;

Near Antonyms

breakdown, collapse, crash;

hindrance, impediment, stumbling block;

decadence, decay, decline, decrease, degeneration, descent, deterioration, diminishment, downgrade, ebbing, failing, flagging, languishment, lapse, lessening, reduction, sinking, slowing, weakening, worsening;

detriment, disablement, drawback, glitch, impairment, shortcoming;

Related Words

quantum leap;

amelioration, boost, heightening, increase, melioration, strengthening, upgrade, uplift, upswing, uptrend, upturn;

betterment, development, elaboration, evolution, expansion, gestation, growth, maturation, perfection, ripening;

civilization, edification, education, enlightenment;

renaissance, renascence, revival;

innovation, invention;

advance

adjective

Definition of advance

1 : made, sent, or furnished ahead of time

advance sales

2 : going or situated before

an advance party of soldiers

See advance defined for English-language learners

Examples of advance in a Sentence

an advance copy of a new book

Recent Examples of advance from the Web

Second, that when ICE asks, the city must provide advance notice of when undocumented people are being released from prison.

— jeff gammage, Philly.com, "Judge rules for Philadelphia in 'Sanctuary City' case," 6 June 2018
To take such a trip, the code requires a senator to get advance permission from the Senate president.

— tom loftus, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky senator was on trip at center of FBI's probe of Ohio speaker," 5 June 2018
The festival continues Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. General admission is free; advance tickets to events have a $2 processing fee.

— brittny mejia, latimes.com, "First day of Los Angeles Times Festival of Books offers a little something for everyone," 22 Apr. 2018
Arguably the biggest news in security this week was also the strangest; a company barely a year old announced a series of AMD vulnerabilities, giving the chip company only a day or so advance notice before making the results public.

— brian barrett, WIRED, "Security News This Week: A Smartphone Botnet Army Keeps Growing Stronger," 17 Mar. 2018
Last month, President Trump pulled the plug on the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), saying the agreement did not advance American security interests.

— benjamin weinthal, Fox News, "Iran still seeking tech for weapons of mass destruction: German intel," 1 June 2018
The group hopes to pass an ordinance that would require workers receive two weeks advance notice of their schedules and the opportunity to work extra hours before new hires.

— chicago tribune staff, chicagotribune.com, "Morning Spin: Fight to decide state GOP chair could go to court," 11 May 2018
Normally, city officials are required to get advance approval for each fundraising drive from both the ethics board and the city’s spending panel.

— ian duncan, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore city solicitor first pitched ethics exemption to allow mayor's staff and agency heads to raise money," 18 May 2018
Gurry also didn’t give advance notice to WIPO’s 191 member states, including the influential Geneva Group, who sit in various combinations on the organization’s governing bodies.

— george russell, Fox News, "Money to burn? US fumes as UN agency hands out millions in staff bonuses," 10 May 2018

Origin and Etymology of advance

derivative of ²advance

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1701

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

ADVANCE Defined for English Language Learners

advance

verb

Definition of advance for English Language Learners

: to move forward
: to move (someone or something) forward
: to go forward : to make progress : to continue in a process of development, aging, etc.

advance

noun

Definition of advance for English Language Learners

: forward movement
: progress in the development or improvement of something
: a rise in price, value, or amount

advance

adjective

Definition of advance for English Language Learners

: made, sent, or provided at an early time
: going or placed before others

ADVANCE Defined for Kids

advance

verb ad·vance \ əd-ˈvans \

Definition of advance for Students

advanced; advancing

1 : to move forward

Advance your piece five spaces on your next turn.

2 : to help the progress of

Laws were passed that advance freedom.

3 : to raise to a higher rank : promote

She was advanced from teller to assistant bank manager.

4 : to give ahead of time

My boss advanced me 100 dollars from my wages.

5 : propose 1

The candidate advanced a new plan.

advance

noun

Definition of advance for Students

1 : a forward movement

Troops tried to halt the enemy's advance.

2 : progress in development : improvement

advances in medicine

3 : a rise in price, value, or amount

4 : a first step or approach

friendly advances

5 : money given ahead of the usual time

I asked for an advance on my salary.

— in advance

: before an expected event

You knew a week in advance about the test.

Law Dictionary

advance

transitive verb ad·vance

legal Definition of advance

advanced; advancing

: to supply or provide ahead of time: as

a : to give (a gift) by way of or as an advancement

b : to supply (as money) beforehand in expectation of repayment or other future adjustment

advance

noun

legal Definition of advance

: a provision of something (as goods or money) before a return is received; also : the money or goods supplied

Learn More about advance

See words that rhyme with advance Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for advance Spanish Central: Translation of advance Nglish: Translation of advance for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of advance for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up advance? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

advance

Definition of advance

advancer

Examples of advance in a Sentence

Recent Examples of advance from the Web

Origin and Etymology of advance

advance Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Synonym Discussion of advance

advance

Definition of advance

Examples of advance in a Sentence

Recent Examples of advance from the Web

Origin and Etymology of advance

advance Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

advance

Definition of advance

Examples of advance in a Sentence

Recent Examples of advance from the Web

Origin and Etymology of advance

Phrases Related to ADVANCE

Related Phrases

ADVANCE Defined for English Language Learners

advance

Definition of advance for English Language Learners

advance

Definition of advance for English Language Learners

advance

Definition of advance for English Language Learners

ADVANCE Defined for Kids

advance

Definition of advance for Students

advance

Definition of advance for Students

Law Dictionary

advance

legal Definition of advance

advance

legal Definition of advance

Learn More about advance

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

'Creep': A Skin-Crawling History

Words for Summer: A Quiz

If the Shoe Fits

Trending: 'Asylum' Trends as Policies Draw Attention

Ghost Word