advance

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle English avauncen, avancen, borrowed from Anglo-Norman avauncier, from Vulgar Latin *abanteāre, from Late Latin ab ante, from Latin ab + ante (“before”). ⟨d⟩ added in analogy to Latin ad- (cf. Middle French advancer). Compare avaunt.

Pronunciation

Verb

advance (third-person singular simple present advances, present participle advancing, simple past and past participle advanced)

  1. To promote or advantage.
    1. To help the progress of (something); to further. [from 12th c.]
      • 2018 January 26, Kareem Shaheen, The Guardian‎:
        Some see it as in effect the end of the Syrian uprising that began with peaceful protests against Assad’s police state in 2011, with opposition fighters working to advance Turkey’s interests at the expense of the revolution’s goals.
    2. To raise (someone) in rank or office; to prefer, to promote. [from 14th c.]
      • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Esther 3:1:
        After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him.
      • 1838, William H[ickling] Prescott, History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic. […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to III), Boston, Mass.: American Stationers’ Company; John B. Russell, →OCLC:
        This, however, was in time evaded by the monarchs, who advanced certain of their own retainers to a level with the ancient peers of the land […]
  2. To move forward in space or time.
    1. To move or push (something) forwards, especially forcefully. [from 14th c.]
      • 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the book number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
        Whence and what art thou, execrable shape, / That dar'st, though grim and terrible, advance / Thy miscreated front athwart my way / To yonder gates?
    2. To make (something) happen at an earlier time or date; to bring forward, to hasten. [form 15th c.]
    3. (intransitive) To move forwards; to approach. [from 16th c.]
      • 1829, Marchioness of Lemington, Rosina, or the Virtuous Country Maid, Ninth ed.:
        I advanced towards him step by step, stopping sometimes for fear of waking him.
      • 2003, C.J. Shane, editor, China (The History of Nations)‎, Greenhaven Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 67:
        This army recaptured Wu-chʻang, on the right bank of the Yangtze, in 1854, reached Chen-chiang four years later, advanced to Chiu-chiang and threatened Nanking.
    4. To provide (money or other value) before it is due, or in expectation of some work; to lend. [from 16th c.]
      • 1869, Anthony Trollope, Phineas Finn:
        “I had intended to ask you to advance me a hundred pounds,” said Phineas.
      • 1871, James William Gilbart, The Principles and Practice of Banking:
        On the urgent representations of several parties of the first importance in the City of London, the bank advanced 120,000l. to the Governor and Company of the Copper Miners […].
    5. To put forward (an idea, argument etc.); to propose. [from 16th c.]
    6. (intransitive) To make progress; to do well, to succeed. [from 16th c.]
      • 2014 April 24, Andrew Sparrow, The Guardian‎:
        Earlier the caller said men were more likely to be in senior positions. Clegg says that's partly because the current maternity leave arrangements make it difficult for women to advance in the workplace.
    7. (intransitive) To move forward in time; to progress towards completion. [from 16th c.]
      • 1927, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes:
        I can promise you that you will feel even less humorous as the evening advances.
  3. To raise, be raised.
    1. (transitive, now archaic) To raise; to lift or elevate. [from 14th c.]
    2. To raise or increase (a price, rate). [from 14th c.]
      • 1924 July 16, The Times:
        In February last […] bakers advanced the price of bread sold over the counter in London from 8d. to 8½d. per quartern loaf.
    3. To increase (a number or amount). [from 16th c.]
    4. (intransitive) To make a higher bid at an auction. [from 18th c.]

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms

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

Noun

advance (plural advances)

  1. A forward move; improvement or progression.
    an advance in health or knowledge
    an advance in rank or office
  2. An amount of money or credit, especially given as a loan, or paid before it is due; an advancement.
    • 1914 June, James Joyce, “Counterparts”, in Dubliners, London: Grant Richards, →OCLC:
      Could he ask the cashier privately for an advance? No, the cashier was no good, no damn good: he wouldn't give an advance.
    • 1780, John Jay, letter dated November 21:
      I shall, with pleasure, make the necessary advances.
  3. An addition to the price; rise in price or value.
    an advance on the prime cost of goods
  4. (often in the plural) An opening approach or overture, now especially of an unwelcome or sexual nature.
    • 1708, Jonathan Swift, The Sentiments of a Church of England Man with Respect to Religion and Government:
      For, if it were of any use to recall matters of fact, what is more notorious, than that prince's applying himself first to the church of England? and upon their refusal to fall in with his measures, making the like advances to the dissenters of all kinds, who readily and almost universally complied with him
    • 1918 September–November, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Land That Time Forgot”, in The Blue Book Magazine, Chicago, Ill.: Story-press Corp., →OCLC; republished as chapter IV, in Hugo Gernsback, editor, Amazing Stories, (please specify |part=I, II, or III), New York, N.Y.: Experimenter Publishing, 1927, →OCLC:
      As the sun fell, so did our spirits. I had tried to make advances to the girl again; but she would have none of me, and so I was not only thirsty but otherwise sad and downhearted.
    • 1923, Walter de la Mare, Seaton's Aunt:
      I felt vaguely he was a sneak, and remained quite unmollified by advances on his side, which, in a boy's barbarous fashion, unless it suited me to be magnanimous, I haughtily ignored.
    • 1945, Tom Ronan, Strangers on the Ophir, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 59:
      [A]nd Rosamund though quite a genteelly brought up young lady had responded to his advances by slapping his face.
    • 1983 August 13, John Kyper, “Flamboyant Inquisitor”, in Gay Community News, volume 11, number 5, page 14:
      In public he put on a performance that was at once outraged and outrageous, but usually he did not carry grudges into his private life. Exuding the backslapping air of a socializer who loved to gamble and drink, he could not understand why people whose careers he had ruined and publicly ridiculed would be hostile to his friendly advances.

Antonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Adjective

advance (comparative more advance, superlative most advance)

  1. Completed before necessary or a milestone event.
    He made an advance payment on the prior shipment to show good faith.
  2. Preceding.
    The advance man came a month before the candidate.
  3. Forward.
    The scouts found a site for an advance base.

Derived terms

Translations
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