accompany

verb

ac·​com·​pa·​ny ə-ˈkəmp-nē How to pronounce accompany (audio)
-ˈkämp-;
-ˈkəm-pə-,
-ˈkäm- How to pronounce accompany (audio)
accompanied; accompanying

transitive verb

1
: to go with as an associate or companion
She accompanied me to the store.
2
: to perform an accompaniment to or for
He will be accompanying her on the piano.
3
a
: to cause to be in association
accompanied their advice with a warning
b
: to be in association with
the pictures that accompany the text

intransitive verb

music : to perform an accompaniment

Examples of accompany in a Sentence

She will accompany me to the store. Ten adults accompanied the class on their field trip. Children under 17 must be accompanied by an adult to see this movie. A delicious sauce accompanied the grilled fish. He will be accompanying her on the piano.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This time, a man wearing a gaiter that covered his nose and mouth was accompanied by three other individuals who appeared intimidating to Raimi. Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 6 Nov. 2024 Either way, the crux is that the answers by AI are always accompanied by a kind of confidence level concerning how likely the answer is correct or not. Lance Eliot, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024 The soundtrack will accompany the film’s score, created by The Weeknd and Daniel Lopatin. Mya Abraham, VIBE.com, 5 Nov. 2024 Critical fire conditions, accompanied by high winds, plagued the California Bay Area, and a torrent of flood-inducing rain continued across the central U.S. Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for accompany 

Word History

Etymology

Middle English accompanien "to make (someone) a companion or associate, be in company with, attend," borrowed from Anglo-French acumpainer, acompaigner "to join together, frequent, keep the company of," from a-, prefix forming transitive verbs (going back to Latin ad- ad-) + cumpaing, cumpaignun companion entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of accompany was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near accompany

Cite this Entry

“Accompany.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accompany. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

accompany

verb
ac·​com·​pa·​ny ə-ˈkəmp-(ə-)nē How to pronounce accompany (audio)
accompanied; accompanying
1
: to go with or attend as a companion
2
: to perform an accompaniment to or for
3
: to occur at the same time as or along with
a thunderstorm accompanied by high winds
Etymology

Middle English accompanien "to accompany," from early French acompaigner (same meaning), from a- "to" and cumpaing "companion," from Latin companio "companion" — related to companion, company

More from Merriam-Webster on accompany

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