What does accrued mean?
Accrued is the past tense and past participle of the verb accrue, meaning to accumulate gradually over time. It applies most often to money and finance: interest accrues on savings, expenses accrue before they are paid, and income accrues between accounting periods. Beyond finance, it also describes intangible accumulations such as vacation days, pension rights, or legal entitlements that build up steadily until they become available. Because accumulation implies patience and passive growth, accrued carries a quiet, methodical tone; nothing dramatic happens, value simply gathers. It belongs firmly to formal registers — annual reports, contracts, HR policies — where precision about when and how much has accumulated matters. Related forms include the verb accrue, the noun accrual (as in 'accrued liabilities'), and the participial adjective use seen in phrases like 'accrued interest'. For readers navigating financial documents or employment terms, understanding accrued is essential to grasping what has genuinely been earned versus merely promised.
Having accumulated or been received gradually over a period of time, especially money, interest, benefits, or rights.
"Significant penalties had accrued by the time the account was settled."
Most common in accounting, legal, and employment contexts; rare in casual conversation.
Describing an amount, benefit, or right that has built up over time and is now due or payable.
"The company reported substantial accrued liabilities at the end of the quarter."
Frequently used attributively in fixed financial terms such as 'accrued interest', 'accrued income', and 'accrued expenses'.
Every day you don't spend your interest, it quietly accrues — the word literally comes from Latin credere, 'to believe', the same root that gave us 'credit' and 'credentials'.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of accrued
Accrued derives from the Old French verb acreuë, past participle of acroistre, meaning to grow or increase, which itself traces back to the Late Latin accrescere — formed from Latin ad- ('to, toward') plus crescere ('to grow'). English adopted the verb accrue in the fifteenth century, initially with the general sense of arising or resulting from something, before narrowing toward its modern association with gradual financial and legal accumulation. Its deeper root connects it to words built on Latin crescere, such as increase and crescent, while its link to credit runs through the related Latin verb credere, meaning to believe or entrust.
Related word forms
How accrued is actually used
Accrued is overwhelmingly used in formal contexts, especially accounting, finance, law, and employment. In everyday speech people are more likely to say 'built up' or 'piled up'. The word carries a neutral-to-positive connotation in financial settings (growth, entitlement) but can sound bureaucratic elsewhere. As a participial adjective ('accrued interest'), it frequently modifies nouns directly rather than appearing as part of a verb phrase.
Easily confused with accrued
Acquired means obtained or gained possession of something, often deliberately, whereas accrued means accumulated gradually over time, usually passively.
Accused means charged with wrongdoing, while accrued refers to the gradual accumulation of money, rights, or benefits.