Dictionary

accretion en · NOUN

Pronunciation

(Southern-England) audio
/əˈkɹiːʃn̩/ (Received-Pronunciation)
(General-American) audio
ŭkrēshən (General-American)
/əˈkɹiʃən/ (General-American)

Etymology

PIE word *h₂éd Learned borrowing from Latin accrētiō (“increase, increment”) + English -ion (suffix forming nouns denoting actions or processes, or their results). Accrētiō is derived from accrēscō (“to grow, increase”) + -tiō (suffix forming nouns denoting actions or processes, or their results); and accrēscō is from ac- (a variant of ad-, prefix meaning ‘to’, or having an intensifying effect) + crēscō (“to grow; to increase”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- (“to cause to grow; to grow; to nourish”)). Doublet of accrue, crescent, and increase.

Meanings

(also, figuratively, uncountable) Increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; organic growth; also, the amount of such growth.
- Warwick was unable to perceive much change in the market-house. […] There might have been a slight accretion of the moss and lichen on the shingled roof. 1900, Charles W[addell] Chesnutt, chapter I, in The House Behind the Cedars, Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC, page 3:
- The immense accretion of flesh which had descended on her in middle life like a flood of lava on a doomed city had changed her from a plump active little woman with a neatly-turned foot and ankle into something as vast and august as a natural phenomenon. 1920, Edith Wharton, chapter IV, in The Age of Innocence, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC, book I, page 25:
(uncountable) (Gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; (countable) an instance of this.
- […] Plants doe nouriſh; Inanimate Bodies doe not: They haue an Accretion, but no Alimentation. 1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon], “VII. Century. [Experiments in Consort, Touching the Affinities, and Differences, betweene Plants and Inanimate Bodies.]”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], London: […] William Rawley […]; [p]rinted by J[ohn] H[aviland] for William Lee […], →OCLC, paragraph 602, page 154:
- Written by accretion rather than from a single author's interpretation Wikipedia has a neo-positivist mania for facts that devalues interpretation in depth, yet in matching [Otto] Friedrich's review against [Vladimir] Nabokov it also shows that it is far from neutral. 2012 March 16, Edward Tenner, “Why Wikipedia's Fans Shouldn't Gloat”, in James Bennet, editor, The Atlantic, Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Monthly Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 03 Jun 2023:
- Our social life is largely a form, a whirl, a commercial relation, a display, a duty, the result of external accretion, not of internal growth. It is not in any sense a unity, nor an expression of the best intellectual life, which seeks other channels. 1890 August, Amelia Gere Mason, “The Women of the French Salons: The Salons of the Eighteenth Century”, in The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine, volume XVIII (New Series; volume XL overall), number 4, New York: The Century Company, →OCLC, page 596, column 1:
- Near-synonym: accumulation
- Two-story log buildings, in the business part of town, brought him from forty to fifty thousand dollars apiece. These fresh accretions of capital were immediately invested in other ventures. 1910 October, Jack London, chapter XI, in Burning Daylight, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, →OCLC, part I, page 106:
- God hath from the beginning made all the Kindes of Hard, and Heavie, and Diaphanous Bodies that are, and of ſuch Figure and magnitude as he thought fit; but hovv ſmall ſoever, they may by accretion become greater in the Mine, or perhaps by generation, though vve knovv not hovv. 1678, Thomas Hobbes, “Of Gravity and Gravitation”, in Decameron Physiologicum: Or, Ten Dialogues of Natural Philosophy. […], London: […] J[ames] C[ottrel] for W[illiam] Crook[e] […], →OCLC, page 94:
- A mineral augments not by growth, but by accretion.
- Suddenly starting from a proposition, exactly and sharply defined, in terms of utmost simplicity and clearness, he rejected the forms of customary logic, and by a crystalline process of accretion, built up his ocular demonstrations in forms of gloomiest and ghastliest grandeur, or in those of the most airy and delicious beauty—so minutely and distinctly, yet so rapidly, that the attention which was yielded to him was chained till it stood among his wonderful creations—till he himself dissolved the spell, and brought his hearers back to common and base existence, by vulgar fancies or exhibitions of the ignoblest passion. 1849 October 9, Rufus Wilmot Griswold, “Edgar Poe”, in N[athaniel] Parker Willis, Hurry-graphs; or, Sketches of Scenery, Celebrities and Society, Taken from Life, 2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner, published 1851, →OCLC, page 241:
- The systematic accretion of violence and complicity that engulfed whole populations at extreme velocity invoked a kind of bewilderment that ended in paralysis, even for many of the greatest minds of the twentieth century. 2019, Shoshana Zuboff, “‘We Make Them Dance’: Surveillance Capitalism, the Rise of Instrumentarian Power, and the Threat to Human Rights”, in Rikke Frank Jørgensen, editor, Human Rights in the Age of Platforms, Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: MIT Press, →ISBN, page 25:
(countable, uncountable) (Gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; (countable) an instance of this. ▸ The process by which material is added to a geological feature; specifically, to a tectonic plate at a subduction zone.
(also, figuratively, uncountable) Followed by of: external addition of matter to a thing which causes it to grow, especially in amount or size.
- [W]hile ſome fevv grevv rich by turning Money in their ovvn Banks, there vvas a falſe Appearance of VVealth vvithin, but no Accretion of Riches from abroad. 1713 October 18 (Gregorian calendar), Richard Steele, “October 8. [1713].”, in The Englishman: Being the Sequel of the Guardian, collected edition, number 2, London: […] Sam[uel] Buckley […], published 1714, →OCLC, page 12:
(uncountable) The process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; concretion; (countable) a thing formed in this manner.
- [T]he vvhole Country of Holland ſeems to be an Accretion partly by the Sea, partly by the River Rhine. a. 1677 (date written), Matthew Hale, “The Sixth Evidence of Fact Proving Novitatem Generis Humani, Namely, the History of the Patres Familiarum, and the Original Plantation of the Continents and Islands of the World”, in The Primitive Origination of Mankind, Considered and Examined According to the Light of Nature, London: […] William Godbid, for William Shrowsbery, […], published 1677, →OCLC, section II, page 191:
- She had no fear of the shadows; her sole idea seemed to be to shun mankind—or rather that cold accretion called the world, which, so terrible in the mass, is so unformidable, even pitiable, in its units. 1891, Thomas Hardy, chapter XIII, in Tess of the d’Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented […], volume I, London: James R[ipley] Osgood, McIlvaine and Co., […], →OCLC, phase the second (Maiden No More), page 166:
- The accretion of particles forms a solid mass.
(countable, uncountable) The process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; concretion; (countable) a thing formed in this manner. ▸ The formation of planets, stars, and other celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; also, the growth of a celestial body through this process.
- This theory, known as pebble accretion, is reshaping how scientists think about the early solar system. […] "In many ways, pebble accretion is the most efficient way of adding mass to a body," says Lambrechts. 2018 April 26, Alexandra Witze, “Earth may have been Formed by a Bunch of Tiny Space Pebbles”, in Jeffrey Goldberg, editor, The Atlantic, Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Monthly Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 28 Jan 2023:
(countable, figuratively) Something gradually added to or growing on a thing externally.
- [T]hoſe places, vvhich vvere formerly filled vvith VVood, have buried the fallen Trees three, four, or five foot deep in the ground, by an accretion or cover of Earth, derived to them ſometimes by Alluvions or Floods, […] a. 1677 (date written), Matthew Hale, “A Brief Consideration of the Hypotheses that Concern the Eternity of the World”, in The Primitive Origination of Mankind, Considered and Examined According to the Light of Nature, London: […] William Godbid, for William Shrowsbery, […], published 1677, →OCLC, section I, page 96:
- If therefore it is admitted that a large part of the narrative of Dionysius [of Halicarnassus] is false, what good ground have we for believing the rest? Assuming however that we are to strip off all the subordinate parts of his narrative, as a later accretion, and to retain only a nucleus of the leading facts, do we find that these can be safely accepted, and that he is confirmed in them by the agreement of the other historians? So far is this from being the case, that the accounts transmitted to us differ widely in the material points of the transaction. 1855, George Cornewall Lewis, “History of Rome, from the Expulsion of the Kings to the Burning of the City by the Gauls (509–390 BCE)”, in An Inquiry into the Credibility of the Early Roman History […], volume 2, London: John W[illiam] Parker and Son, […], →OCLC, part I (From the Establishment of Consuls to the First Secession (509–494 b.c.)), § 17, page 75:
- accretion of ice
(countable, figuratively, uncountable) Something gradually added to or growing on a thing externally. ▸ A substance which has built up on the surface of an object, rather than become embedded in it.
- Accretions of dirt on clothing are often left in place by conservators because they can provide additional details about the artefact’s importance or history.
- Pure Lust is a double-edged analysis of the evolution of feminist spiritual system. In Pure Lust Daly attempts to pare away the accretions of patriarchal ideology and reveal the fundamental elements of emerging feminist philosophy. 1985 February 2, Sandra Karp, “Making Female Experience Sacred”, in Gay Community News, volume 12, number 28, page 12:
(uncountable) Increase in property by the addition of other property to it (for example, gain of land by alluvion (“the deposition of sediment by a river or sea”) or dereliction (“recession of water from the usual watermark”), or entitlement to the products of the property such as interest on money); or by the property owner acquiring another person’s ownership rights; accession; (countable) an instance of this.
(qualifier:inheritance law, uncountable) Increase of an inheritance to an heir or legatee due to the share of a co-heir or co-legatee being added to it, because the latter person is legally unable to inherit the share.

Forms

Spelling	Features	Labels	Source
accretions	Number=Plur		lexicographic

Translations (113)

es acrecencia (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · fr accroissement ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · cs zvětšení ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · ro acreție (process by which material is added to a geological feature; specifically, to a tectonic plate at a subduction zone) · ru сраще́ние (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · cmn 吸積 /吸积 (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kasautuma (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · uk акреція (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kerääntymä (something gradually added to or growing on a thing externally) · fi perintöosuuden kasvaminen (increase of an inheritance to an heir or legatee due to the share of a co-heir or co-legatee being added to it) · io naturala akumulo (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · el επαύξηση (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ru прираще́ние (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · fa برافزایش (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · nl vermeerdering ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · tg аккретсия (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · sk akrécia (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · pl akrecja (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · cs akrece (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ca acreció (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · la accrēsciamentum ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · es acrecimiento (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · bg прираст ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · ca acreció (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ia augmento (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ru увеличе́ние (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · bg на́леп (something gradually added to or growing on a thing externally) · pt acreção ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · ru нара́щивание ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · lb akkretioun (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · pl akrecja ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · ro dezvoltare ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · pl przyrost (something gradually added to or growing on a thing externally) · ja 降着 (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kasvaminen (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ms tokokan (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · pt acreção (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · pt acreção (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · hy աճանստվածք (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ia accrescimento (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ky аккреция (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ru сраста́ние (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · uk зроста́ння (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · az akkresiya (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ga fuilleamh (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · de Anwachsen ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · es acrecencia ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · es acreción (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · bg увеличение (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · bg акреция (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ast acrecimientu (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · bn বিবৃদ্ধি (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kasautuma (substance which has built up on the surface of an object, rather than become embedded in it) · cs přírůstek ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · fi kasaantuminen ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · vi bồi tụ (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kerrostuminen (process by which material is added to a geological feature; specifically, to a tectonic plate at a subduction zone) · uz akkretsiya (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · it accrescimento (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · cs nárůst (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · it accrezione ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · it accrezione (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · et akretsioon (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · kk аккреция (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · it accrescimento ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · fi kasvu (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · uk наро́щування ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · fr accrétion (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · de Zunahme (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ar تنامي (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · sh akrécija (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ro acrescământ (increase of an inheritance to an heir or legatee due to the share of a co-heir or co-legatee being added to it) · cs narůstání (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kerääntyminen ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · nl accretie ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · sk narastanie (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · nb akkresjon (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fr accrétion (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · el επισώρευση (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · el πρόσφυση (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · pl przyrost ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · te ఎక్రీషన్ (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · cs nárůstek (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · sh акре́ција (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · mk насобирањето (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kasautumisteoria (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · de Zuwachs ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · da tilføjelse (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · it accrescimento (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · fi kasautuma (something gradually added to or growing on a thing externally) · oc acrecion (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · id akresi (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ru аккре́ция (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · cs přírůstek (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ro acreție (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · bg срастване (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · fi kasautuma (external addition of matter to a thing which causes it to grow) · tr yığılma (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · ko 강착 (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · nl accretie (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · be акрэ́цыя (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · lt akrecija (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · bg прираст (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · de Akkretion (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · fi kasautuminen (process of separate particles aggregating or coalescing together; thing formed in this manner — see also concretion, concrescence) · lv akrēcija (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · mk акрецијата (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · eo alkresko ((gradual) increase by an external addition of matter; an instance of this) · fr accrétion (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · he ספיחה (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · ru приро́ст (increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of matter; amount of such growth) · eu akrezio (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process) · pl akrecja (formation of celestial bodies by the aggregating of matter drawn together by gravity; growth of a celestial body through this process)

accretion en · NOUN

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Translations (113)