accrued; accruing
1
: to come into existence as a legally enforceable claim
2
a
: to come about as a natural growth, increase, or advantage
the wisdom that accrues with age
b
: to come as a direct result of some state or action
rewards due to the feminine will accrue to me—
Germaine Greer
Germaine Greer3
: to accumulate or be added periodically
interest accrues on a daily basis
: to accumulate or have due after a period of time
accrue vacation time
Examples of accrue in a Sentence
I'll get back all the money I invested, plus any interest and dividends that have accrued.
investments that have accrued interest and dividends
Recent Examples on the Web
The group has now accrued at least half a dozen wins inside that space on all of those tallies.
—Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 13 Apr. 2025
After accruing a stake of about 1% in WBD, hedge fund Sessa Capital has been agitating for the company to restructure.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 11 Apr. 2025
Note: All North Carolina taxpayers have until Thursday, May 1 to file and pay their federal and state taxes this year, though people who live in non-disaster counties will begin to accrue interest on April 15, The News & Observer previously reported.
—Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2025
This failure has hurt both vehicle owners and the state itself: Owners don’t have the opportunity to get money back that the law says should be theirs, and the state is missing out on both the potential payments and any interest or investment income that would accrue from the deposits.
—Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for accrue
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Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 13 Apr. 2025
After accruing a stake of about 1% in WBD, hedge fund Sessa Capital has been agitating for the company to restructure.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 11 Apr. 2025
Note: All North Carolina taxpayers have until Thursday, May 1 to file and pay their federal and state taxes this year, though people who live in non-disaster counties will begin to accrue interest on April 15, The News & Observer previously reported.
—Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2025
This failure has hurt both vehicle owners and the state itself: Owners don’t have the opportunity to get money back that the law says should be theirs, and the state is missing out on both the potential payments and any interest or investment income that would accrue from the deposits.
—Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for accrue
Cite this Entry
“Accrue.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accrue. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
accrue
verb
ac·crue
ə-ˈkrü 
accrued; accruing
1
: to come about as a natural growth or addition
benefits accrue to society from education
2
: to accumulate over a period of time
accrued interest
accrual
noun
-ˈkrü-əl
Legal Definition
accrue
verb
ac·crue
ə-ˈkrü
accrued; accruing
1
: to come into existence as an enforceable claim : vest as a right
action…does not accrue until the plaintiff knew or reasonably should have known that he may have suffered injury—National Law Journal
National Law JournalNote: Statutes of limitations begin to run when a cause of action accrues.
2
: to come by way of increase or addition : arise as a growth or result
—usually used with to or from
advantages accruing to society from the freedom of the press
interest accrues to the seller as a result of the delay
3
: to be periodically accumulated in the process of time whether as an increase or a decrease
the accruing of taxes
allowing the receivable interest to accrue
1
: to accumulate or have due after a period of time
authorized by law to accrue leave in the maximum amount of 90 days
2
: to enter in the books as an accrual
Etymology
Middle French accreue increase, addition to a property, from feminine of accreu, past participle of acreistre to increase
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