advance

ad·vance (

d-v

)

v. ad·vanced, ad·vanc·ing, ad·vanc·es

v.tr.

1. To cause to move forward: advance a chess piece.

2. To put forward; propose or suggest: advanced a novel theory during the seminar.

3. To aid the growth or progress of: advanced the cause of freedom.

4. To raise in rank; promote.

5. To cause to occur sooner: advance a deadline by one week.

6. To raise in amount or rate; increase.

7. To pay (money or interest) before due.

8. To supply or lend, especially on credit.

9. To serve as an advance person for (a trip to be made by a politician or a dignitary): "advanced the China trip during which the first trade agreements . . . were signed" Suzanne Perney.

10. Archaic To lift.

v.intr.

a. To go or move forward or onward.

b. To move against another, as when attacking: advance on the enemy's position.

2. To make progress; improve.

3. To rise in rank, position, or value.

4. To serve as an advance person for a trip to be made by a politician or a dignitary.

1. The act or process of moving or going forward.

2. A forward move, as toward an objective; a progressive step: an advance in genetic engineering.

3. An increase of price or value.

4. advances Opening approaches made to secure acquaintance, favor, or an agreement; overtures.

a. The furnishing of funds or goods on credit.

b. The funds or goods so furnished; a loan.

a. Payment of money before due: an advance on next month's salary.

b. The money so paid.

7. Preparation, especially publicity, done prior to the appearance of a public figure or the staging of a public event.

adj.

1. Made or given ahead of time: an advance payment.

2. Going before, in front, or forward.

Idioms:

in advance

Ahead of time; beforehand.

in advance of

In front of; ahead of.

[Middle English avauncen, from Old French avauncer, from Vulgar Latin *abantire, from Latin abante, from before : ab-, ab- + ante, before; see ant- in Indo-European roots.]

ad·vancer n.

Synonyms: advance, forward, foster, further, promote
These verbs mean to cause to move ahead, as toward a goal: advance a worthy cause; forwarding their own interests; fostered friendly relations; furthering your career; efforts to promote sales.

Antonym: retard¹

Usage Note: Advance, as a noun, is used for forward movement (the advance of the army) or for progress or improvement in a figurative sense. Advancement is used mainly in the figurative sense: career advancement. In the figurative sense, moreover, there is a distinction between the two terms deriving from the transitive and intransitive forms of the verb advance. The noun advancement (unlike advance) often implies the existence of an agent or outside force. Thus, the advance of science means simply the progress of science, whereas the advancement of science implies progress resulting from the action of an agent or force: The purpose of the legislation was the advancement of science.

advance

Verb

[-vancing, -vanced]

1. to go or bring forward

2. to make progress: this student has advanced in reading and writing

3. to further a cause: an association founded to advance the interests of ex-soldiers

4. advance on to move towards someone in a threatening manner

5. to present an idea for consideration

6. to lend a sum of money

Noun

1. a forward movement

2. improvement or progress: the greatest advance in modern medicine

3. a loan of money

4. a payment made before it is legally due

5. an increase in price: any advance on fifty pounds?

6. in advance beforehand: you have to pay in advance

7. in advance of ahead of in time or development

Adjective

done or happening before an event: advance warning

See also advances [Latin abante from before]

ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms

Noun	1.	advance - a movement forward; "he listened for the progress of the troops" progression, progress change of location, travel - a movement through space that changes the location of something headway, head - forward movement; "the ship made little headway against the gale"
	2.	advance - a change for the better; progress in development betterment, improvement resurgence, revitalisation, revitalization, revival, revivification - bringing again into activity and prominence; "the revival of trade"; "a revival of a neglected play by Moliere"; "the Gothic revival in architecture" elaboration, refinement - the result of improving something; "he described a refinement of this technique" transformation, transmutation, shift - a qualitative change accommodation, adjustment, fitting - making or becoming suitable; adjusting to circumstances conservation, preservation - an occurrence of improvement by virtue of preventing loss or injury or other change recovery - return to an original state; "the recovery of the forest after the fire was surprisingly rapid"
	3.	advance - a tentative suggestion designed to elicit the reactions of others; "she rejected his advances" feeler, overture, approach proffer, proposition, suggestion - a proposal offered for acceptance or rejection; "it was a suggestion we couldn't refuse"
	4.	advance - the act of moving forward (as toward a goal) forward motion, onward motion, progress, advancement, progression, procession movement, move, motion - the act of changing location from one place to another; "police controlled the motion of the crowd"; "the movement of people from the farms to the cities"; "his move put him directly in my path" push - an effort to advance; "the army made a push toward the sea" career, life history - the general progression of your working or professional life; "the general had had a distinguished career"; "he had a long career in the law" march - a steady advance; "the march of science"; "the march of time" clear sailing, easy going, plain sailing - easy unobstructed progress; "after we solved that problem the rest was plain sailing" leapfrog - advancing as if in the child's game, by leaping over obstacles or competitors; "the company still believes the chip is a leapfrog in integration and will pay huge dividends" retreat - the act of withdrawing or going backward (especially to escape something hazardous or unpleasant)
	5.	advance - an amount paid before it is earned cash advance amount, amount of money, sum, sum of money - a quantity of money; "he borrowed a large sum"; "the amount he had in cash was insufficient"
	6.	advance - increase in price or value; "the news caused a general advance on the stock market" rise step-up, increase - the act of increasing something; "he gave me an increase in salary"
Verb	1.	advance - move forward, also in the metaphorical sense; "Time marches on" march on, move on, progress, go on, pass on go, locomote, move, travel - change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically; "How fast does your new car go?"; "We travelled from Rome to Naples by bus"; "The policemen went from door to door looking for the suspect"; "The soldiers moved towards the city in an attempt to take it before night fell"; "news travelled fast" forge - move ahead steadily; "He forged ahead" penetrate - make one's way deeper into or through; "The hikers did not manage to penetrate the dense forest" creep up, sneak up - advance stealthily or unnoticed; "Age creeps up on you" encroach, impinge, infringe - advance beyond the usual limit plough on, press on, push on - continue moving forward string along, string - move or come along overhaul, overtake, pass - travel past; "The sports car passed all the trucks" close in, draw in - advance or converge on; "The police were closing in on him" edge, inch - advance slowly, as if by inches; "He edged towards the car" rachet up, ratchet, ratchet down - move by degrees in one direction only; "a ratcheting lopping tool" elapse, glide by, go by, slide by, slip by, slip away, go along, pass, lapse - pass by; "three years elapsed" draw back, move back, pull away, pull back, recede, retreat, withdraw, retire - pull back or move away or backward; "The enemy withdrew"; "The limo pulled away from the curb"
	2.	advance - bring forward for consideration or acceptance; "advance an argument" throw out propose, suggest, advise - make a proposal, declare a plan for something; "the senator proposed to abolish the sales tax"
	3.	advance - increase or raise; "boost the voltage in an electrical circuit" supercharge, boost increase - make bigger or more; "The boss finally increased her salary"; "The university increased the number of students it admitted"
	4.	advance - contribute to the progress or growth of; "I am promoting the use of computers in the classroom" encourage, promote, further, boost connive at, wink at - give one's silent approval to foster, further - promote the growth of; "Foster our children's well-being and education" spur - incite or stimulate; "The Academy was formed to spur research" help - contribute to the furtherance of; "This money will help the development of literacy in developing countries" carry - take further or advance; "carry a cause" feed - support or promote; "His admiration fed her vanity" conduce, contribute, lead - be conducive to; "The use of computers in the classroom lead to better writing" back up, support - give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to; "She supported him during the illness"; "Her children always backed her up"
	5.	advance - cause to move forward; "Can you move the car seat forward?" bring forward move, displace - cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense; "Move those boxes into the corner, please"; "I'm moving my money to another bank"; "The director moved more responsibilities onto his new assistant" nose - advance the forward part of with caution; "She nosed the car into the left lane" back - cause to travel backward; "back the car into the parking spot"
	6.	advance - obtain advantages, such as points, etc.; "The home team was gaining ground"; "After defeating the Knicks, the Blazers pulled ahead of the Lakers in the battle for the number-one playoff berth in the Western Conference" gain ground, get ahead, make headway, pull ahead, win, gain steal - steal a base rack up, score, tally, hit - gain points in a game; "The home team scored many times"; "He hit a home run"; "He hit .300 in the past season"
	7.	advance - develop in a positive way; "He progressed well in school"; "My plants are coming along"; "Plans are shaping up" progress, shape up, come along, come on, get along, get on climb - improve one's social status; "This young man knows how to climb the social ladder" leapfrog - progress by large jumps instead of small increments develop - grow, progress, unfold, or evolve through a process of evolution, natural growth, differentiation, or a conducive environment; "A flower developed on the branch"; "The country developed into a mighty superpower"; "The embryo develops into a fetus"; "This situation has developed over a long time"
	8.	advance - develop further; "We are advancing technology every day" ameliorate, improve, meliorate, amend, better - to make better; "The editor improved the manuscript with his changes"
	9.	advance - give a promotion to or assign to a higher position; "John was kicked upstairs when a replacement was hired"; "Women tend not to advance in the major law firms"; "I got promoted after many years of hard work" elevate, kick upstairs, promote, upgrade, raise assign, delegate, designate, depute - give an assignment to (a person) to a post, or assign a task to (a person) tenure - give life-time employment to; "She was tenured after she published her book" bring up - promote from a lower position or rank; "This player was brought up to the major league" spot promote - promote on the spot; "Supreme Bishop Digby had been spot-promoted to Archangel" ennoble, gentle, entitle - give a title to someone; make someone a member of the nobility favor, favour, prefer - promote over another; "he favors his second daughter" brevet - promote somebody by brevet, in the military
	10.	advance - pay in advance; "Can you advance me some money?" loan, lend - give temporarily; let have for a limited time; "I will lend you my car"; "loan me some money"
	11.	advance - move forward; "we have to advance clocks and watches when we travel eastward" set ahead set - set to a certain position or cause to operate correctly; "set clocks or instruments"
	12.	advance - rise in rate or price; "The stock market gained 24 points today" gain mount, wax, climb, rise - go up or advance; "Sales were climbing after prices were lowered"
Adj.	1.	advance - being ahead of time or need; "gave advance warning"; "was beforehand with her report" beforehand early - at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time; "early morning"; "an early warning"; "early diagnosis"; "an early death"; "took early retirement"; "an early spring"; "early varieties of peas and tomatoes mature before most standard varieties"
	2.	advance - situated ahead or going before; "an advance party"; "at that time the most advanced outpost was still east of the Rockies" in advance, advanced front - relating to or located in the front; "the front lines"; "the front porch"

advance

verb 1. progress, proceed, go ahead, move up, come forward, go forward, press on, gain ground, make inroads, make headway, make your way, cover ground, make strides, move onward << OPPOSITE retreat