From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
advance
adj 1: being ahead of time or need; "gave advance warning"; "was
beforehand with her report" [syn: advance(a),
beforehand(p)]
2: situated ahead or going before; "an advance party"; "at that
time the most advanced outpost was still east of the Rockies"
[syn: advance(a), advanced(a), in advance(p)]
n 1: a movement forward; "he listened for the progress of the
troops" [syn: progress, progression, advance]
2: a change for the better; progress in development [syn:
improvement, betterment, advance]
3: a tentative suggestion designed to elicit the reactions of
others; "she rejected his advances" [syn: overture,
advance, approach, feeler]
4: the act of moving forward (as toward a goal) [syn:
progress, progression, procession, advance,
advancement, forward motion, onward motion] [ant:
retreat]
5: an amount paid before it is earned [syn: advance, cash
advance]
6: increase in price or value; "the news caused a general
advance on the stock market" [syn: advance, rise]
v 1: move forward, also in the metaphorical sense; "Time marches
on" [syn: advance, progress, pass on, move on,
march on, go on] [ant: draw back, move back, pull
away, pull back, recede, retire, retreat,
withdraw]
2: bring forward for consideration or acceptance; "advance an
argument" [syn: advance, throw out]
3: increase or raise; "boost the voltage in an electrical
circuit" [syn: boost, advance, supercharge]
4: contribute to the progress or growth of; "I am promoting the
use of computers in the classroom" [syn: promote,
advance, boost, further, encourage]
5: cause to move forward; "Can you move the car seat forward?"
[syn: advance, bring forward] [ant: back]
6: 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" [syn: gain,
advance, win, pull ahead, make headway, get ahead,
gain ground] [ant: drop off, fall back, fall behind,
lose, recede]
7: develop in a positive way; "He progressed well in school";
"My plants are coming along"; "Plans are shaping up" [syn:
progress, come on, come along, advance, get on,
get along, shape up] [ant: regress, retrograde,
retrogress]
8: develop further; "We are advancing technology every day"
9: give a promotion to or assign to a higher position; "John was
kicked upstairs when a replacement was hired"; "Women tend
not to advance in the major law firms"; "I got promoted after
many years of hard work" [syn: promote, upgrade,
advance, kick upstairs, raise, elevate] [ant:
break, bump, demote, kick downstairs, relegate]
10: pay in advance; "Can you advance me some money?"
11: move forward; "we have to advance clocks and watches when we
travel eastward" [syn: advance, set ahead]
12: rise in rate or price; "The stock market gained 24 points
today" [syn: advance, gain]