Accept, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Accepted; p. pr. & vb. n. Accepting.]
Etymology: [F. accepter, L. acceptare, freq. of accipere; ad + capere to take; akin to E. heave.]
1. To receive with a consenting mind (something offered); as, to accept a gift; -- often followed by of. If you accept them, then their worth is great. Shak. To accept of ransom for my son. Milton. She accepted of a treat. Addison.
2. To receive with favor; to approve. The Lord accept thy burnt sacrifice. Ps. xx. 3. Peradventure he will accept of me. Gen. xxxii. 20.
3. To receive or admit and agree to; to assent to; as, I accept your proposal, amendment, or excuse.
4. To take by the mind; to understand; as, How are these words to be accepted
4 more senses
5. (Com.)
To receive as obligatory and promise to pay; as, to accept a bill of exchange. Bouvier.
6. In a deliberate body, to receive in acquittance of a duty imposed; as, to accept the report of a committee. [This makes it the property of the body, and the question is then on its adoption.] To accept a bill (Law), to agree (on the part of the drawee) to pay it when due. -- To accept service (Law), to agree that a writ or process shall be considered as regularly served, when it has not been. -- To accept the person (Eccl.), to show favoritism. "God accepteth no man's person." Gal. ii. 6.
Syn. -- To receive; take; admit. See Receive.
1 other Webster entry under this spelling
Accept, a.
Accepted. [Obs.] Shak.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for accept; he lists it under agree, assume, confess.
Where he writes about it:
One may accept an obligation or assume an authority that properly belongs to him, or he may assume an obligation or indebtedness that could not be required of him. — from assume
We accept another's statement; admit any point made against us; acknowledge what we have said or done, good or bad; avow our individual beliefs or feelings; certify to facts within our knowledge; confess our own faults; endorse a friend's note or statement; grant a request; own our faults or obligations; recognize lawful authority; concede a claim. — from confess