augmentation

[ awg-men-tey-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act of augmenting; state of being augmented.
2. that by which anything is augmented.
3. Music. modification of a theme by increasing the time value of all its notes.
4. Heraldry. an addition to a coat of arms granted to a person by a sovereign power in recognition of a notable action.

augmentation

/ ˌɔːɡmɛnˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of augmenting or the state of being augmented
2. the amount by which something is increased
3. See diminution
   music the presentation of a subject of a fugue, in which the note values are uniformly increased Compare diminution

Word History and Origins

Origin of augmentation¹

1425–75; late Middle English (< Anglo-French ) < Late Latin augmentātiōn- (stem of augmentātiō ). See augment, -ation; replacing late Middle English aumentacion < Middle French

Example Sentences

Using ground-based augmentation, it can get down to millimeter-level accuracy.

From MIT Technology Review

Both BeiDou and GPS rely heavily on ground-based augmentation to boost positioning accuracy to the centimeter level.

From MIT Technology Review

Personal augmentation systems that help people thrive as they age.

From MIT Technology Review

Wendy later tells Kevin that her parents weighed her weekly and that, following an “exhausting” struggle to control her weight, she has decided to get breast augmentation and liposuction.

From Washington Post

We felt like we could build this new generation of developer tools and get to Michael Jordan’s vision of intelligent augmentation, which is giving creatives tools where they can be a lot more productive.

From TechCrunch

The brochure, I later learned, was not for breast augmentation‚ but breast reconstruction.

From The Daily Beast

In 2010, at 18 years old, she drew criticism for undergoing a $5,000 breast-augmentation surgery, going from an A-cup to a C-cup.

From The Daily Beast

The cost of breast augmentation varies, but $5,000 is a representative figure.

From The Daily Beast

In Germany, she was accused of 19 counts of fraud, including skipping out on a $10,000 bill for breast augmentation surgery.

From The Daily Beast

The judges appear to have done their best to find a good-taste beauty queen (i.e., not the biggest breast augmentation).

From The Daily Beast

They would not, he thought, be much alarmed by any augmentation of power which the Emperor might obtain.

From Project Gutenberg

The augmentation, or diminution, of its size, is caused by the care taken to unite the great with the small individuals.

From Project Gutenberg

The next day a royal message to parliament announced the augmentation of the navy.

From Project Gutenberg

It includes but two formul: Either instinct is a fructification of intelligence; or intelligence is an augmentation of instinct.

From Project Gutenberg

I hope you will find no great difficulty in procuring the small augmentation to the loan which it requires.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• enhancement
• enlargement

More About Augmentation

What does augmentation mean?

Augmentation is the act or process of augmenting something—adding to it in a way that makes it bigger or better.

This can involve literally or figuratively increasing it in size, number, shape, value, or quality or in some other way.

The augmentation of a material involves the addition of another material or substance to make it stronger. The augmentation of a museum collection involves the addition of new artifacts.

The word can also refer to a thing that augments—an additional source of income is an augmentation to one’s salary.

Augment and augmentation are also used in a much more specific way in the context of music, but their general senses are much more commonly used.

Example: The augmentation of our emergency stockpile should be our top priority.

Where does augmentation come from?

The first records of the word augmentation come from the 1400s. The verb augment is first recorded earlier and comes from the Late Latin augmentum, meaning “an increase,” from the verb aug(ēre), “to increase.”

Augmentation is often used in the context of an increase in size or amount, but it can refer to other kinds of changes, such as in quality. Augment and augmentation are typically used in a neutral or positive way—they usually imply that whatever is being added to will be made better by the addition.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to augmentation?

• augment (verb)

What are some synonyms for augmentation?

• enhancement
• strengthening
• reinforcement
• amplification
• enlargement
• expansion

What are some words that share a root or word element with augmentation? 

• augmentative
• augmenter
• augmented
• augmented reality

What are some words that often get used in discussing augmentation?

• increase
• addition
• better
• size
• strength
• amount
• income
• salary
• change
• cognition
• shape
• strategy

How is augmentation used in real life?

Augmentation is a common word that can be used in all kinds of contexts.

Near term #workplace future is about intelligent #augmentation, not job elimination https://t.co/wCMGCsdEEn

— Matti Haapamäki (@MattiHaapamaki) May 8, 2017

our brains don't need augmenting, no problem there, it's our minds that need augmentation .. stuck with old concepts, blind to reality

— gregorylent (@gregorylent) October 16, 2016

If a human is a human despite undergoing a radical process of augmentation then the argument that a persons gender has a deterministic relationship with the body is entirely debunked.

— Queer Buzzkill (they/them) (@trans_rage) September 6, 2019

 

Try using augmentation!

Which of the following words is NOT a synonym of augmentation?

A. enhancement
B. lessening
C. strengthening
D. enlargement