ETYM Latin accumulatio; cf. French accumulation.
1. The act of accumulating; SYN. accrual, accruement.
2. (Finance) Profits that are not paid out as dividends but are added to the capital base of the corporation.
In earth science, the addition of snow and ice to a glacier. It is the opposite of ablation. Snow is added through snowfall and avalanches, and is gradually compressed to form ice. Although accumulation occurs at all parts of a glacier, it is most significant at higher altitudes near the glacier's start where temperatures are lower.