accentuate

English

Etymology

• First attested in 1731.
• (emphasize): First attested in 1865.
• From Medieval Latin accentuātus, past participle of accentuāre, from Latin accentus.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, US) IPA^(key): /əkˈsɛn.t͡ʃu.eɪt/, /ækˈsɛn.t͡ʃuˌeɪt/

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Verb

accentuate (third-person singular simple present accentuates, present participle accentuating, simple past and past participle accentuated)

1. (transitive) To pronounce with an accent or vocal stress.
2. (transitive) To bring out distinctly; to make more noticeable or prominent; to emphasize.
   • 1898, H. G. Wells, The War of the Worlds/Book 2/Chapter 3:

     our danger and insolation only accentuated the incompatibility

   • 1913, Robert Barr, chapter 5, in Lord Stranleigh Abroad‎:

     These were business hours, and a feeling of loneliness crept over him, perhaps germinated by his sight of the illustrated papers, and accentuated by an attempted perusal of them.

   • 1962 March, “The New Year Freeze-up on British Railways”, in Modern Railways, page 159:

     Attempts by Waterloo signalmen to clear the points by power operation eventually exhausted point motor batteries, which are fed by trickle chargers, and a blown fuse accentuated the problem; thus, even when the points had been cleared of ice, no power was available to operate them until the batteries were sufficiently recharged.

3. (transitive) To mark with a written accent.

Synonyms

• accent, betone

Derived terms

Related terms

• accentual
• accentuation

Translations

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /at.t͡ʃen.tuˈa.te/, /at.t͡ʃenˈtwa.te/
• Rhymes: -ate
• Hyphenation: ac‧cen‧tu‧à‧te, ac‧cen‧tuà‧te

Etymology 1

Participle

accentuate f pl

1. feminine plural of accentuato

Adjective

accentuate f pl

1. feminine plural of accentuato

Etymology 2

Verb

accentuate

1. inflection of accentuare:
   1. second-person plural present indicative
   2. second-person plural imperative

References