Definition of "accumulation" []

• The act of gathering or amassing, as into a heap or pile: "Little things grew by continual accumulation” ( Samuel Johnson). (noun)
• The process of growing into a large amount or heap: the steady accumulation of knowledge. (noun)
• An amount that has accumulated or been accumulated: an accumulation of debt; an accumulation of rubbish. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "For one, inventory accumulation is expected to contribute nearly a percentage point to the headline figure, which can only provide a short-term boost unless consumers increase spending enough to allow inventories to be drawn down."
• "You can in fact be certain that private capital accumulation is a fundamental necessity in our system, while maintaining that (minor) redistribution is an ongoing requirement."
• "Capital accumulation is the concentration of wealth in the hands of those whose basic comsumption needs have already been met."