Origin: Latin suffix -ance
Advance has 24 different meanings across 3 categories:
a change for the better; progress in development
"The team celebrated their recent advance after years of struggling to improve the software's performance."
the act of moving forward (as toward a goal)
"The team decided to advance their strategy by launching the new product two months earlier than planned."
an amount paid before it is earned
"The client requested a fifty-dollar advance to cover the initial costs of the project."
A forward move; improvement or progression.
"The team made significant advances in their research over the past year."
In plain English: An advance is money given to someone before they have earned it.
"The army made slow progress through the enemy's territory during their advance."
Usage: Use "advance" as a noun to describe a step forward in progress or an improvement toward a goal, such as an advance in technology. It often refers to tangible movement ahead rather than abstract concepts like feelings or states of being.
obtain advantages, such as points, etc.
"The home team was gaining ground"
"After defeating the Knicks, the Blazers pulled ahead of the Lakers in the battle for the number-one playoff berth in the Western Conference"
"win points"
To promote or advantage.
"The new policy aims to advance women's rights by providing better access to education and leadership opportunities."
To help the progress of (something); to further.
"The new research findings will advance our understanding of climate change."
In plain English: To move forward or get ahead of something.
"We need to advance our schedule because the meeting was moved up."
Usage: Use advance as a verb when something helps to further a cause, project, or situation by promoting it forward. Avoid using it simply to mean moving physically forward, which requires the word move or go ahead.
being ahead of time or need
"gave advance warning"
"was beforehand with her report"
situated ahead or going before
"an advance party"
"at that time the most advanced outpost was still east of the Rockies"
Completed before necessary or a milestone event.
"The team decided to advance their launch date by two weeks despite not finishing all the final testing yet."
In plain English: Advance means coming before something else happens or being ahead of others.
"The committee made an advance decision to approve the new project early in the year."
Usage: Use "advance" as an adjective to describe something that has been finished ahead of schedule or before a specific deadline. It often modifies terms like payment, notice, or research to indicate early completion relative to expectations.
The word "advance" comes from the Old French phrase meaning "to go before," which was borrowed into Middle English as avauncen. It entered modern usage with its current sense of moving forward, derived directly from the Latin combination for "from in front."