accreted; accreting
: to grow or become attached by accretion
: to cause to adhere or become attached
also
: accumulate
Synonyms
Examples of accrete in a Sentence
silt accreting at the mouth of the river over time
Recent Examples on the Web
An artist’s illustration of an accreting supermassive black hole.
—
Fan Zou, Discover Magazine, 20 July 2024
There is also a supermassive black hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy (Sgr A*), but there is not yet enough material that has accreted for astronomers to pick up any emitted radiation, even in the infrared.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 18 June 2024
While the federal bureaucracy was accreting independent administrative authority, however, conservatives in the 1970s and 1980s were embracing a rival interpretation of the constitutional separation of powers known as the unitary executive theory.
—Stephen I. Vladeck, Foreign Affairs, 19 Oct. 2021
Sherman works alone, in a Tribeca studio or in a converted barn on her property in East Hampton, which are now chockablock with wigs, costumes, props, and prostheses, accreted over years of rummaging.
—Chris Wiley, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for accrete 
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.
Fan Zou, Discover Magazine, 20 July 2024
There is also a supermassive black hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy (Sgr A*), but there is not yet enough material that has accreted for astronomers to pick up any emitted radiation, even in the infrared.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 18 June 2024
While the federal bureaucracy was accreting independent administrative authority, however, conservatives in the 1970s and 1980s were embracing a rival interpretation of the constitutional separation of powers known as the unitary executive theory.
—Stephen I. Vladeck, Foreign Affairs, 19 Oct. 2021
Sherman works alone, in a Tribeca studio or in a converted barn on her property in East Hampton, which are now chockablock with wigs, costumes, props, and prostheses, accreted over years of rummaging.
—Chris Wiley, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for accrete
Dictionary Entries Near accrete
Cite this Entry
“Accrete.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accrete. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
accrete
verb
ac·crete
ə-ˈkrēt 
accreted; accreting
: to grow or become attached by accretion
: to cause to adhere or become attached
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share