Printer Friendly
The Free Dictionary
904,617,410 visitors served.
?
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

growing

   Also found in: Medical, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.53 sec.
grow  (gr)
v. grew (gr), grown (grn), grow·ing, grows
v.intr.
1. To increase in size by a natural process.
2.
a. To expand; gain: The business grew under new owners.
b. To increase in amount or degree; intensify: The suspense grew.
3. To develop and reach maturity.
4. To be capable of growth; thrive: a plant that grows in shade.
5. To become attached by or as if by the process of growth: tree trunks that had grown together.
6. To come into existence from a source; spring up: love that grew from friendship.
7. To come to be by a gradual process or by degrees; become: grow angry; grow closer.
v.tr.
1. To cause to grow; raise: grow tulips.
2. To allow (something) to develop or increase by a natural process: grow a beard.
3. Usage Problem To cause to increase or expand by concerted effort: strategies that grew the family business.
Phrasal Verbs:
grow into
1. To develop so as to become: A boy grows into a man.
2. To develop or change so as to fit: She grew into her job. He grew into the relationship slowly.
grow on/upon
1. To become gradually more evident to: A feeling of distrust grew on me.
2. To become gradually more pleasurable or acceptable to: a taste that grows on a person.
grow up
To become an adult.
Idiom:
grow out of
To develop or come into existence from: an article that grew out of a few scribbled notes.

[Middle English growen, from Old English grwan; see ghr- in Indo-European roots.]

grower n.
growing·ly adv.
Usage Note: Grow has been used since medieval times as an intransitive verb, as in Our business has been growing steadily for 10 years. It has been used with an object since the 18th century, meaning "to produce or cultivate," as in We grow corn in our garden. But the transitive use applied to business and nonliving things is quite new. It came into full bloom during the 1992 presidential election, when nearly all the candidates were concerned with "growing the economy." The Usage Panel is decidedly less fond of this development than business leaders and politicans are. Eighty percent of the Panel rejects the phrase grow our business. The Panel is more accepting of, though not enthusiastic about, the phrase grow our way, perhaps because of way's established use in expressions like make our way and find our way: 48 percent accept We've got to grow our way out of this recession. The Panel has no affection for the odd but occasionally heard phrase grow down: 98 percent reject If elected, I shall do my utmost to grow down the deficit.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.growinggrowing - (biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level; "he proposed an indicator of osseous development in children"
culture - (biology) the growing of microorganisms in a nutrient medium (such as gelatin or agar); "the culture of cells in a Petri dish"
biological science, biology - the science that studies living organisms
amelogenesis - the developmental process of forming tooth enamel
angiogenesis - the formation of new blood vessels
apposition - (biology) growth in the thickness of a cell wall by the deposit of successive layers of material
auxesis - growth from increase in cell size without cell division
anthesis, blossoming, florescence, flowering, inflorescence, efflorescence - the time and process of budding and unfolding of blossoms
caenogenesis, cainogenesis, cenogenesis, kainogenesis, kenogenesis - introduction during embryonic development of characters or structure not present in the earlier evolutionary history of the strain or species (such as the addition of the placenta in mammalian evolution)
cohesion - (botany) the process in some plants of parts growing together that are usually separate (such as petals)
cultivation - the process of fostering the growth of something; "the cultivation of bees for honey"
cytogenesis, cytogeny - the origin and development and variation of cells
foliation, leafing - (botany) the process of forming leaves
fructification - the bearing of fruit
gametogenesis - the development and maturation of sex cells through meiosis
gastrulation - the process in which a gastrula develops from a blastula by the inward migration of cells
germination, sprouting - the process whereby seeds or spores sprout and begin to grow
habit - the general form or mode of growth (especially of a plant or crystal); "a shrub of spreading habit"
infructescence - the fruiting stage of the inflorescence
intussusception - (biology) growth in the surface area of a cell by the deposit of new particles between existing particles in the cell wall
juvenescence - the process of growing into a youth
life cycle - the course of developmental changes in an organism from fertilized zygote to maturity when another zygote can be produced
masculinisation, masculinization, virilisation, virilization - the abnormal development of male sexual characteristics in a female (usually as the result of hormone therapies or adrenal malfunction)
morphogenesis - differentiation and growth of the structure of an organism (or a part of an organism)
myelinisation, myelinization - the development of a myelin sheath around a nerve fiber
neurogenesis - the development of nerve tissues
biological process, organic process - a process occurring in living organisms
palingenesis, recapitulation - emergence during embryonic development of various characters or structures that appeared during the evolutionary history of the strain or species
proliferation - growth by the rapid multiplication of parts
psychogenesis - a general term for the origin and development of almost any aspect of the mind
psychogenesis - the development in the life of an individual of some disorder that is caused by psychological rather than physiological factors
psychomotor development - progressive acquisition of skills involving both mental and motor activities
psychosexual development - (psychoanalysis) the process during which personality and sexual behavior mature through a series of stages: first oral stage and then anal stage and then phallic stage and then latency stage and finally genital stage
rooting - the process of putting forth roots and beginning to grow
suppression - the failure to develop some part or organ
dentition, odontiasis, teething - the eruption through the gums of baby teeth
teratogenesis - the development of defects in an embryo
vegetation - the process of growth in plants
isometry - the growth rates in different parts of a growing organism are the same
2.growing - (electronics) the production of (semiconductor) crystals by slow crystallization from the molten state
production - the act or process of producing something; "Shakespeare's production of poetry was enormous"; "the production of white blood cells"
electronics - the branch of physics that deals with the emission and effects of electrons and with the use of electronic devices
epitaxy - growing a crystal layer of one mineral on the crystal base of another mineral in such a manner that its crystalline orientation is the same as that of the substrate
Adj.1.growing - relating to or suitable for growth; "the growing season for corn"; "good growing weather"
Translations
Spanish growing [ˈgrəuɪŋ] adjcreciente;
growing pains (also fig) → problemas mpl de crecimiento

French growing [ˈgrəuɪŋ] adj [fear, amount] → croissant(e)grandissant(e);
growing pains (Med) → fièvre f de croissance (fig); difficultés fpl de croissance

German growing [ˈgrəuɪŋ] grow adjwachsend;
(number) → zunehmend;
growing pains grow → Wachstumsschmerzen pl (fig); Kinderkrankheiten pl, Anfangsschwierigkeiten pl

Italian growing [ˈgrəuɪŋ] adj [fear, amount] → crescente;
growing pains (also fig) → problemi mpl di crescita

?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
Add definition
? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
`It was much pleasanter at home,' thought poor Alice, `when one wasn't always growing larger and smaller, and being ordered about by mice and rabbits.
The Red Queen made no resistance whatever; only her face grew very small, and her eyes got large and green: and still, as Alice went on shaking her, she kept on growing shorter--and fatter--and softer--and rounder--and--
She was growing a little stout, but it did not seem to detract an iota from the grace of every step, pose, gesture.
 
Dictionary/thesaurus browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Translations
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2008 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.