Incrementum

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Characterizing a gradual increase or growth, often in a systematic manner
2. referring to a process of adding on or enlarging, typically in stages or steps
3. signifying an enhancement or improvement that builds upon previous levels or amounts

Etymology: The Latin "incrementum" comes from "increscere," "to grow in or upon," which joins the prefix "in-" to "crescere," "to grow." The ending "-mentum" is a common Latin suffix that turns an action into a noun for its result, so the core sense is the product of growing: growth, enlargement, or increase. The same root produced several familiar English words. "Crescent" comes from the Latin participle of "crescere" and names the shape of a growing moon. Italian "crescendo," a musical term for a gradual swell in volume, is the same verb in its present participle form. English "increment" is borrowed directly from this Latin noun. It kept the sense of an amount added to a total, which is why the stepwise meaning of "incrementum" fits so naturally into modern usage.

Synonyms: increase, growth, addition, augmentation

Antonyms: decrease, reduction