advancement

[ ad-vans-muhnt, -vahns- ]

noun

1. the act or process of moving forward:

   They hoped that destroying bridges around the metropolis would slow the advancement of enemy troops.

2. promotion in rank or standing; preferment:

   She had high hopes for advancement in the company.

3. development toward increased understanding, quality, utility, or benefit to human welfare in a consequential area of knowledge, technology, or practice:

   She toiled in the lab out of personal ambition, not for the advancement of medical science.

4. an achievement or result contributing to progress in a consequential area of knowledge, technology, or practice:

   Advancements in robotics will transform industry.

5. Law. money or property given by one person during their lifetime to another that is considered an anticipation of an inheritance and is therefore to be deducted from any share that the recipient may have in a donor's estate.

advancement

/ ədˈvɑːnsmənt /

noun

1. promotion in rank, status, etc; preferment
2. a less common word for advance advance
3. property law the use during a testator's lifetime of money or property for the benefit of a child or other person who is a prospective beneficiary in the testator's will

Other Words From

• non·ad·vance·ment noun
• self-ad·vance·ment noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of advancement¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English avauncement, from Anglo-French, Old French avancement; advance, -ment

Example Sentences

For example, the ideas of moral and intellectual advancement that Jefferson championed in the context of a so-called natural aristocracy were reinterpreted within a framework of collective advancement for all Black Americans.

From Salon

Though they recognized the antebellum nation as configured in such a way that militated against their social advancement, Hosea Easton, for example, claimed that Black people were “constitutionally Americans.”

From Salon

Though Black liberals did not stipulate that the public must share their religious faith, they believed that transforming America’s racially coded statutes and customs could only be brought about through the moral advancement of the United States and its people.

From Salon

Jeffries outlined legislative priorities for a potential Democratic majority, saying that they would pass the John Roberts Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Women’s Health Protection Act.

From Salon

The end result, "Here," is another example of Zemeckis’ love for technological advancement.

From Salon

Related Words

• advance
• growth
• improvement
• upgrading