What does "accept" mean?
Something that is accepted.
Accept
/əkˈsɛpt/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Something that is accepted.
- Grammar: accept is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: assume, consent, take, abide.
- Useful contrasts: academic dissent case, agonizing, ceremonial decline.
- Usage evidence: I accept, but only under one condition.
How to use "accept"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "accept" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "accept" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "accept" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "accept" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "accept" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "assume" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "accept", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Something that is accepted.
"Almost all line segments will be trivial accepts or trivial rejects, so the above covers the vast majority of cases."
Verb
- 1 To receive, especially with a consent, with favour, or with approval. transitive
"Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice."
- 2 tolerate or accommodate oneself to wordnet
- 3 To admit to a place or a group. transitive
"The Boy Scouts were going to accept him as a member."
- 4 consider or hold as true wordnet
- 5 To regard as proper, usual, true, or to believe in. transitive
"I accept the notion that Christ lived."
Show 17 more definitions
- 6 be sexually responsive to, used of a female domesticated mammal wordnet
- 7 To receive as adequate or satisfactory. transitive
- 8 react favorably to; consider right and proper wordnet
- 9 To receive or admit to; to agree to; to assent to; to submit to. transitive
"I accept your proposal, amendment, or excuse."
- 10 give an affirmative reply to; respond favorably to wordnet
- 11 To endure patiently. transitive
"I accept my punishment."
- 12 make use of or accept for some purpose wordnet
- 13 To acknowledge patiently without opposition or resistance. transitive
"We need to accept the fact that restaurants are closed due to COVID-19 and that no amount of wishing or screaming will make them reopen any sooner."
- 14 receive (a report) officially, as from a committee wordnet
- 15 To agree to pay. transitive
- 16 receive willingly something given or offered wordnet
- 17 To receive officially. transitive
"to accept the report of a committee"
- 18 admit into a group or community wordnet
- 19 To receive something willingly. intransitive
- 20 take on as one's own the expenses or debts of another person wordnet
- 21 To do a service done by an establishment. Philippines
"We accept repairs."
- 22 be designed to hold or take wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Accepted. Early, Modern, obsolete
"Pass our accept and peremptory answer."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"I accept, but only under one condition."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "accept"?
Common synonyms include: assume, consent, take, abide, abide by, abide with.
How do you use "accept" in a sentence?
I accept, but only under one condition.
How do you pronounce "accept"?
Pronounced /əkˈsɛpt/.
Etymology
First attested about 1380. From Middle English accepten, borrowed from Old French accepter, or directly from Latin acceptō, acceptāre (“receive”), frequentative of accipiō, formed from ad- + capiō (“to take”). Displaced native Old English onfōn.