Accentuate

//əkˈsɛn.t͡ʃu.eɪt// verb

verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To pronounce with an accent or vocal stress. transitive
  2. 2
    put stress on; utter with an accent wordnet
  3. 3
    To bring out distinctly; to make more noticeable or prominent; to emphasize. transitive

    "our danger and insolation only accentuated the incompatibility"

  4. 4
    to stress, single out as important wordnet
  5. 5
    To mark with a written accent. transitive

Synonyms

All synonyms
accentaccentstressbelaborbetonedwell on

Example

More examples

"Make-up can accentuate your cheekbones."

Etymology

First attested in 1731; borrowed from Medieval Latin accentuātus, perfect passive participle of accentuō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from Latin accentus.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.