accept

English

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.

    Pronunciation

    • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /əkˈsɛpt/, /ækˈsɛpt/
      • Audio (UK):(file)
    • (General American) IPA(key): /əkˈsɛpt/, /ækˈsɛpt/, /ɪkˈsɛpt/
      • Audio (US):(file)
    • (Canada) IPA(key): /əkˈsɛpt/
    • (Australia, New Zealand) IPA(key): /əkˈsept/
    • (Hong Kong) IPA(key): /əˈsɛp(t)/
    • Homophone: except (for some pronunciations)
    • Hyphenation: ac‧cept
    • Rhymes: -ɛpt

    Verb

    accept (third-person singular simple present accepts, present participle accepting, simple past and past participle accepted)

    1. (transitive) To receive, especially with a consent, with favour, or with approval.
      • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Psalms 20:3:
        Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice.
      • 1714 August 25, Joseph Addison, “The Sequel of the Story of Shalum and Hilpa”, in The Spectator, number 585; republished in The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison, Esq, volume 4, London: Jacob Tonson, 1721, page 112:
        The Chinese say, that a little time afterwards she accepted of a treat in one of the neighbouring hills to which Shalum had invited her.
      • 1842, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], chapter III, in Zanoni. […], volume I, London: Saunders & Otley, […], →OCLC, 2nd book (Art, Love, and Wonder), page 151:
        I bid thee banish from thy heart all thought of me, but as one whom the Future cries aloud to thee to avoid. Glyndon, if thou acceptest his homage, will love thee till the tomb closes upon both.
    2. (transitive) To take up something given, or submit to something imposed, either willingly or reluctantly.
    3. (transitive) To admit to a place or a group.
      The Boy Scouts were going to accept him as a member.
    4. (transitive) To regard as proper, usual, true, or to believe in.
      I accept the notion that Christ lived.
      I can't accept nothing being done about the problem and your standing idly by.
    5. (transitive) To receive as adequate or satisfactory.
    6. (transitive) To receive or admit to; to agree to; to assent to; to submit to.
      I accept your proposal, amendment, or excuse.
    7. (transitive) To endure patiently.
      I accept my punishment.
    8. (transitive) To acknowledge patiently without opposition or resistance.
      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.
    9. (transitive, law, business) To agree to pay.
    10. (transitive) To receive officially.
      to accept the report of a committee
    11. (intransitive) To receive something willingly.
    12. (Philippines) To do a service done by an establishment.
      We accept repairs.
      We accept bookbinding.

    Conjugation

    Conjugation of accept
    infinitive (to) accept
    present tense past tense
    1st-person singular accept accepted
    2nd-person singular accept, acceptest† accepted, acceptedst†
    3rd-person singular accepts, accepteth† accepted
    plural accept
    subjunctive accept accepted
    imperative accept —
    participles accepting accepted

    † Archaic or obsolete.

    Antonyms

    Derived terms

    Descendants

    • ⇒ Tok Pisin: akseptim

    Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
    Translations to be checked

    Adjective

    accept (comparative more accept, superlative most accept)

    1. (Early Modern, obsolete) Accepted.

    Noun

    accept (plural accepts)

    1. (computing) Something that is accepted.
      Antonym: reject
      • 1996, Jim Blinn, Jim Blinn's Corner: A Trip Down the Graphics Pipeline, page 127:
        Almost all line segments will be trivial accepts or trivial rejects, so the above covers the vast majority of cases.

    Romanian

    Pronunciation

    • IPA(key): [akˈt͡ʃept]

    Etymology 1

    Etymology tree
    Latin acceptus
    German Akzeptbor.
    Romanian accept

      Borrowed from German Akzept, from Latin acceptus.

      Noun

      accept n (plural accepte)

      1. acceptance
      Declension
      singular plural
      indefinite definite indefinite definite
      nominative-accusative accept acceptul accepte acceptele
      genitive-dative accept acceptului accepte acceptelor
      vocative acceptule acceptelor

      Etymology 2

      Verb

      accept

      1. first-person singular present indicative/subjunctive of accepta

      Scots

      Pronunciation

      • IPA(key): [əkˈsɛp(t)]

      Verb

      accept (third-person singular simple present accepts, present participle acceptin, simple past and past participle acceptit)

      1. accept

      References

      Swedish

      Etymology

      From Latin acceptum, from accipere.

      Noun

      accept c

      1. (finance, business) a bill of exchange that has been accepted
      2. (finance, business) the acceptance of a bill of exchange

      Declension

      Declension of accept
      nominative genitive
      singular indefinite accept accepts
      definite accepten acceptens
      plural indefinite accepter accepters
      definite accepterna accepternas
      Declension of accept
      nominative genitive
      singular indefinite accept accepts
      definite acceptet acceptets
      plural indefinite — —
      definite — —

      Derived terms

      References

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