əˈkrēshən, aˈ- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Latin accretion-, accretio increase, increment, from accretus (past participle of accrescere to increase) + -ion-, -io -ion — more at accresce
1. : the process of growth or enlargement:
a. : organic growth : continued development from within
b. : increase by external addition or accumulation (as by adhesion of external parts or particles)
c.
(1) : the increase or extension of the boundaries of land or the consequent acquisition of land accruing to the owner by the gradual or imperceptible action of natural forces (as by the washing up of sand or soil from the sea or a river or by a gradual recession of the water from the usual watermark) : accession in which the boundaries of land are enlarged by this process ; sometimes : increase in the amount or extent of any kind of property or in the value of any property — compare avulsion
(2) : gain to an heir or legatee by failure of a coheir or a colegatee to take his share
2.
a. : the result of the process of accretion
every culture is an accretion — A.L.Kroeber
a complex accretion of rules — Edmund Wilson
b. : the matter added ; especially : an extraneous addition
accretions of grime
the immense accretion of flesh which had descended on her in middle life — Edith Wharton
c. forestry : increment ; sometimes : increase in diameter as contrasted with increase in volume
3. : concretion : coherence of separate particles