# accumulate

> English word · Verb · IPA /əˈkjuːmjʊˌleɪt/ · frequency rank #15,319

## Definitions
1. To heap up in a mass; to pile up; to collect or bring together (either literally or figuratively), often gradually and without active intent.
2. To gradually grow or increase in quantity or number.
3. To take a higher degree at the same time with a lower degree, or at a shorter interval than usual.

## Etymology
First attested c. 1487; from Middle English accumylaten, borrowed from Latin accumulātus, perfect passive participle of accumulō (“to amass, pile up”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), formed from ad (“to, towards, at”) + cumulō (“to heap”), from cumulus (“a heap”) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix). Cognate with French accumuler.

## Easily confused with
- **accumulated** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/accumulate-vs-accumulated)
- **accumulator** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/accumulate-vs-accumulator)

## Common misspellings (12)
`accmuulate`, `accumluate`, `accummulate`, `accumualte`, `accumulaet`, `accumulatte`, `accumullate`, `accumultae`, `accuumlate`, `acucmulate`, `acumulate`, `cacumulate`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/accumulate