addition

noun

ad·​di·​tion ə-ˈdi-shən 

a-

1

: a part added (as to a building or residential section)

The addition expanded the kitchen.

2

: anything or anyone added : increase

The clerk was a recent addition to the staff.

3

: the act or process of adding

a recipe enhanced by the addition of freshly ground pepper

especially : the operation of combining numbers so as to obtain an equivalent simple quantity

schoolchildren learning about addition and subtraction

4

: direct chemical combination of substances into a single product

Phrases

in addition

: besides entry 2, also

The job requires a college degree and, in addition, at least two years of experience.

in addition to

: combined or associated with : besides entry 1 sense 2

In addition to soup, several salads were served.

Synonyms

• annex
• extension
• penthouse

Examples of addition in a Sentence

The children learned addition and subtraction.

The museum's collection includes several new additions.

Recent Examples on the Web

Getting Tunsil up front is a solid move in addition to acquiring Samuel. —Saad Yousuf, The Athletic, 11 Mar. 2025

His constituents, in addition to complaining about the high-speed chases, had reported being racially profiled. —Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025

In addition to her time on RHOC, Judge has appeared on other spinoffs for the network including Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: Ex-Wives Club and The Traitors. —Dave Quinn, People.com, 10 Mar. 2025

In addition to publishing the news, the family press also sold books and pamphlets. —Alexandra Cox, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English addicioun, borrowed from Anglo-French addicion, borrowed from Latin additiōn-, additiō, from addi-, variant stem of addere "to add" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for addition

• admission
• ambition
• attrition
• audition
• clinician
• cognition
• coition
• commission
• condition
• contrition
• dentition
• dismission

Kids Definition

addition

noun

ad·​di·​tion ə-ˈdish-ən 

a-

1

: the result of adding : increase

2

: the act, process, or operation of adding

3

: a part added (as to a building)