Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Augment?

\Aug*ment"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Augmented}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Augmenting}.] [L. augmentare, fr. augmentum an increase, fr. augere to increase; perh. akin to Gr. ?, ?, E. wax, v., and eke, v.: cf. F. augmenter.] 1. To enlarge or increase in size, amount, or degree; to swell; to make bigger; as, to augment an army by re["e]forcements; rain augments a stream; impatience augments an evil. But their spite still serves His glory to augment. --Milton. 2. (Gram.) To add an augment to.
\Aug*ment"\, v. i. To increase; to grow larger, stronger, or more intense; as, a stream augments by rain.
\Aug"ment\, n. [L. augmentum: cf. F. augment.] 1. Enlargement by addition; increase. 2. (Gram.) A vowel prefixed, or a lengthening of the initial vowel, to mark past time, as in Greek and Sanskrit verbs. Note: In Greek, the syllabic augment is a prefixed ?, forming an intial syllable; the temporal augment is an increase of the quantity (time) of an initial vowel, as by changing ? to ?.