Synonyms for emphasize
Most common
Definitions
- v. 1
To stress, give emphasis or extra weight to (something).
His two-fingered gesture emphasized what he had told his boss to do with his job.
- v. 2
UK standard spelling of emphasize.
Related words
- Other spellings
- emphasise UK
Forms
- Past participle
- emphasized
e.g. emphasized → accentuated, stressed, accented, punctuated…
Example sentences
- accentuate A light touch of makeup can accentuate beauty.
- punctuate Punctuate the following sentence as appropriate.
- underline Please underline every word that you don't know.
- underscore Tom has an underscore in his password.
- highlight For Tom, this moment was the highlight of the day.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| emphasize | steady | |
| accentuate | steady | |
| punctuate | rising | |
| underline | rising | |
| underscore | rising | |
| highlight | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- press1
- 6 letters
- stress1, accent2, betone
- 9 letters
- highlight2, underline3, punctuate3
- 10 letters
- underscore3, accentuate4
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (accent2 = 2 syllables).