advance

The word “advance” means to move forward, or to help something make progress. In plain terms, to move forward or make progress, or money given ahead of time.

“Advance” is pronounced uhd-VAHNS (/ədˈvæns/ in IPA).

Here is “advance” used in a sentence: “The troops advanced under cover of darkness.”

Words with a similar meaning to “advance” include improve and assign.

The opposite of “advance” — its antonyms — are regress, retract, retreat and regression.

Depending on how it is used, “advance” can be a verb, a noun and an adjective.

The word “advance” comes from Late Latin. From Anglo-Norman avauncier, ultimately from Late Latin ab ante ("from before"); a "d" was later added to match Latin ad-.

“Advance” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

'Advance' is mainly a verb or noun about moving forward or progress — troops advance, or you request an advance on your pay. 'Advanced' is an adjective meaning highly developed or at a high level, like an advanced course or advanced technology. The extra '-d' shifts the meaning entirely.

As a verb meaning to move forward, the opposite is 'retreat', 'withdraw', or 'go back'. In the sense of making progress, opposites include 'regress', 'decline', or 'set back'. So an army may retreat rather than advance, and a project can regress rather than advance.

'Advance' carries several senses: to move physically forward, to help something progress ('advance a cause'), to put forward an idea, and to pay money ahead of time (a cash advance). As a noun it can also mean a development or breakthrough, as in medical advances.

You might say, 'The soldiers advanced across the field,' meaning they moved forward. Or, 'The research will advance our understanding of the disease,' meaning it helps knowledge progress. Both uses share the core idea of forward motion, whether physical or figurative.