What does augment mean?
To augment something is to make it greater by adding to it — increasing its size, strength, quantity, or value through supplementation rather than replacement. The verb is most often used in formal or professional contexts: workers augment their income with freelance projects, companies augment their staff during busy seasons, and researchers augment data sets with additional observations. The word carries a neutral-to-positive connotation, suggesting constructive improvement rather than mere growth. It derives from the Latin augere, meaning "to increase," the same root that gives us "author," "auction," and "inaugurate." A notable modern extension appears in "augmented reality," where digital elements are layered onto the physical world to enhance it. Related forms include the noun "augmentation" and the adjective "augmentative." Because it emphasizes building upon what already exists, "augment" is a precise alternative to blunter words like "increase" when the idea of supplementation matters.
To make something greater by adding to it; to increase or supplement.
"He augmented his lecture notes with diagrams and primary sources."
Transitive verb, typically formal register.
(Grammar and music) A form produced by augmentation: in grammar, a prefix added to certain verb forms (notably in Greek); in music, the statement of a theme in note values of doubled length.
"In ancient Greek, the augment is a syllable added at the beginning of certain past-tense verbs."
Specialist use only; far less common than the verb.
As a noun, "augments" refers to multiple instances of the grammatical or musical augment; it is rare outside linguistics and music theory.
"The textbook devotes a chapter to Homeric augments."
Every time you say someone is an "author," you're echoing the same Latin root as "augment" — augere, "to grow" — because authors literally make things grow into existence.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of augment
"Augment" comes from the Latin augmentum, an increase, derived from the verb augere, meaning "to increase or grow." The word passed into English via Old French "augmenter" in the late Middle Ages. It shares this root with "author" (one who causes something to grow into being), "auction" (increasing bids), "august" (consecrated, from the same root via augere's sense of growth toward greatness), and "inaugurate."
Related word forms
How augment is actually used
"Augment" is somewhat formal in register, common in academic, business, and technical writing. It typically implies addition to something already existing rather than replacement. In technology contexts, "augmented reality" has given the word a modern, high-profile usage.
Easily confused with augment
"Augur" means to predict or foreshadow the future, while "augment" means to increase or add to something; they look and sound similar but are unrelated in meaning.