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accelerate - 6 dictionary results

ac⋅cel⋅er⋅ate

[ak-sel-uh-reyt] verb, -at⋅ed, -at⋅ing.
–verb (used with object)
1. to cause faster or greater activity, development, progress, advancement, etc., in: to accelerate economic growth.
2. to hasten the occurrence of: to accelerate the fall of a government.
3. Mechanics. to change the velocity of (a body) or the rate of (motion); cause to undergo acceleration.
4. to reduce the time required for (a course of study) by intensifying the work, eliminating detail, etc.
–verb (used without object)
5. to move or go faster; increase in speed.
6. to progress or develop faster.

Origin:
1515–25; < L accelerātus speeded up (ptp. of accelerāre), equiv. to ac- ac- + celer swift + -ātus -ate 1


ac⋅cel⋅er⋅a⋅ble, adjective
ac⋅cel⋅er⋅at⋅ed⋅ly, adverb
ac·cel·er·ate   (āk-sěl'ə-rāt')   
v.   ac·cel·er·at·ed, ac·cel·er·at·ing, ac·cel·er·ates

v.   tr.
  1. To increase the speed of.
  2. To cause to occur sooner than expected.
  3. To cause to develop or progress more quickly: a substance used to accelerate a fire.
    1. To reduce the time required for (an academic course, for example); compress into a shorter period.
    2. To make it possible for (a student) to finish an academic course faster than usual.
  4. Physics To change the velocity of.
v.   intr.
  1. To move or act faster. See Synonyms at speed.
  2. To engage in an academic program that progresses faster than usual.

[Latin accelerāre, accelerāt- : ad-, intensive pref.; see ad- + celerāre, to quicken (from celer, swift).]
ac·cel'er·a'tive adj., ac·cel'er·a·to'ry (-ər-ə-tôr'ē, -tōr'ē) adj.

Accelerate

Ac*cel"er*ate\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Accelerated; p. pr. & vb. n. Accelerating.] [L. acceleratus, p. p. of accelerare; ad + celerare to hasten; celer quick. See Celerity.]

1. To cause to move faster; to quicken the motion of; to add to the speed of; -- opposed to retard.

2. To quicken the natural or ordinary progression or process of; as, to accelerate the growth of a plant, the increase of wealth, etc.

3. To hasten, as the occurence of an event; as, to accelerate our departure.

Accelerated motion (Mech.), motion with a continually increasing velocity.

Accelerating force, the force which causes accelerated motion. --Nichol.

Syn: To hasten; expedite; quicken; dispatch; forward; advance; further.
Language Translation for : accelerate
Spanish: acelerar,
German: beschleunigen,
Japanese: 加速する

accelerate 
c.1525, from L. acceleratus, pp. of accelerare "quicken," from ad- "to" + celerare "hasten," from celer "swift" (see celerity). Accelerator in motor vehicle sense is first recorded 1900.

Main Entry: ac·cel·er·ate
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: -at·ed; -at·ing
transitive verb : to bring about at an earlier time: as a : to advance (the maturity date of a security agreement) so that payment of the debt in full is due immediately —see also ACCELERATION CLAUSE b : to cause (a future interest in property) to vest by removing the preceding interests (as by failure or premature termination) intransitive verb : to enforce an acceleration clause accelerate was suspended —J. J. White and Railroad S. Summers> —ac·cel·er·a·tion noun

Main Entry: ac·cel·er·ate
Pronunciation: ik-'sel-&-"rAt, ak-
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: -at·ed; -at·ing
transitive senses
: to cause to move faster or speed up <accelerated speech and motor activity in manic patients>; also : to cause to undergoacceleration accelerate intransitive senses
: to move faster : gain speed
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