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What is the difference between grow and increase?

grow | increase |

Increase is a synonym of grow.

Increase is a antonym of grow.



In transitive terms the difference between grow and increase

is that grow is to cause or allow something to become bigger, especially to cultivate plants while increase is to make (a quantity) larger.

As verbs the difference between grow and increase

is that grow is to become bigger while increase is to become larger.

As a noun increase is

an amount by which a quantity is increased.

grow

English

Verb

  • (ergative) To become bigger.
  • Children grow quickly.
  • To appear or sprout.
  • Flowers grew on the trees as summer approached.
    A long tail began to grow from his backside.
  • To cause or allow something to become bigger, especially to cultivate plants.
  • * {{quote-news
  • , year=2011 , date=March 01 , author=Peter Roff , title=Another Foolish Move By Congress , work=Fox News citation , passage=The Bush administration – which sought to grow the number of fisheries managed under a program known as “catch shares”... }}
    He grows peppers and squash each summer in his garden.
    Have you ever grown your hair before?
  • (copulative) To assume a condition or quality over time.
  • The boy grew wise as he matured.
    The town grew smaller and smaller in the distance as we travelled.
    You have grown strong.
  • (obsolete) To become attached or fixed; to adhere.
  • * Shakespeare
  • Our knees shall kneel till to the ground they grow .

    Usage notes

    * Growed is a slang or dialect inflection for the simple past and past participle.

    Antonyms

    * shrink

    Derived terms

    * grow a pair * growed * grower * grow house * growing pains * growing point * grown-up * grow on * grow op * grow out of * growth * grow up * outgrow * overgrow

    increase

    English

    Alternative forms

    * encrease

    Verb

    (increas)
  • (of a quantity) To become larger.
  • * Bible, Genesis vii. 17
  • The waters increased and bare up the ark.
  • * Shakespeare
  • The heavens forbid / But that our loves and comforts should increase , / Even as our days do grow!
  • To make (a quantity) larger.
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Fenella Saunders, magazine=(American Scientist)
  • , title= Tiny Lenses See the Big Picture , passage=The single-imaging optic of the mammalian eye offers some distinct visual advantages. Such lenses can take in photons from a wide range of angles, increasing light sensitivity. They also have high spatial resolution, resolving incoming images in minute detail.}}
  • To multiply by the production of young; to be fertile, fruitful, or prolific.
  • * Sir M. Hale
  • Fishes are more numerous of increasing than beasts or birds, as appears by their numerous spawn.
  • (astronomy) To become more nearly full; to show more of the surface; to wax.
  • The Moon increases .

    Synonyms

    * (become larger) go up, grow, rise, soar (rapidly), shoot up (rapidly) * (make larger) increment, raise, (informal) up

    Antonyms

    * (become larger) decrease, drop, fall, go down, plummet (rapidly), plunge (rapidly), reduce, shrink, sink * (make larger) cut, decrease, decrement, lower, reduce

    Derived terms

    * increasable

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • An amount by which a quantity is increased.
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Philip J. Bushnell
  • , magazine=(American Scientist), title= Solvents, Ethanol, Car Crashes & Tolerance , passage=Surprisingly, this analysis revealed that acute exposure to solvent vapors at concentrations below those associated with long-term effects appears to increase the risk of a fatal automobile accident. Furthermore, this increase in risk is comparable to the risk of death from leukemia after long-term exposure to benzene, another solvent, which has the well-known property of causing this type of cancer.}}
  • For a quantity, the act or process of becoming larger
  • (knitting) The creation of one or more new stitches; see .
  • Synonyms

    * (amount by which a quantity is increased) gain, increment, raise, rise

    Antonyms

    * (amount by which a quantity is increased) cut, decrease, decrement, drop, fall, loss, lowering, reduction, shrinkage