Adjacent Words

Accost definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ACCOST', v.t.
1. To approach; to draw near; to come side by side, or face to face. [Not in use.]
2. To speak first to; to address.
ACCOST', v.i. to adjoin. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: speak to someone [syn: address, accost, come up to]
2: approach with an offer of sexual favors; "he was solicited by a prostitute"; "The young man was caught soliciting in the park" [syn: hook, solicit, accost]

Merriam Webster's

transitive verb Etymology: Middle French accoster, ultimately from Latin ad- + costa rib, side — more at coast Date: 1597 to approach and speak to often in a challenging or aggressive way

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. 1 approach and address (a person), esp. boldly. 2 (of a prostitute) solicit. Etymology: F accoster f. It. accostare ult. f. L costa rib: see COAST

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Accost Ac*cost", v. i. To adjoin; to lie alongside. [Obs.] ``The shores which to the sea accost.'' --Spenser.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Accost Ac*cost", n. Address; greeting. [R.] --J. Morley.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Accost Ac*cost" (#; 115), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Accosted; p. pr. & vb. n. Accosting.] [F. accoster, LL. accostare to bring side by side; L. ad + costa rib, side. See Coast, and cf. Accoast.] 1. To join side to side; to border; hence, to sail along the coast or side of. [Obs.] ``So much [of Lapland] as accosts the sea.'' --Fuller. 2. To approach; to make up to. [Archaic] --Shak. 3. To speak to first; to address; to greet. ``Him, Satan thus accosts.'' --Milton.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(accosts, accosting, accosted) If someone accosts another person, especially a stranger, they stop them or go up to them and speak to them in a way that seems rude or threatening. (FORMAL) A man had accosted me in the street. VERB: V n [disapproval]

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. Come alongside, confront, approach, draw near, address, salute, greet, speak to, make up to.

Moby Thesaurus

address, advance, apostrophize, appeal to, approach, appropinquate, approximate, bear down on, bear down upon, bear up, bespeak, bid good day, bid good morning, bow to, buttonhole, call to, close, close in, close with, come, come closer, come forward, come near, come on, come up, confront, curtsy, draw near, draw nigh, encounter, exchange greetings, gain upon, greet, hail, halloo, invoke, kiss, kiss hands, lift the hat, narrow the gap, near, nod to, proximate, pull the forelock, salute, say hello, shake, shake hands, sidle up to, speak, speak fair, speak to, step up, take aside, talk to, touch the hat, uncover