Choosing an increase synonym starts with one question: does the thing grow by itself, or does someone make it grow? Prices rise, climb or grow on their own, while a manager can raise, boost or expand a budget. Pick from the wrong side and the sentence breaks.
Keep scrolling to find another word for increase as a verb and a noun, a speed scale from edge up to skyrocket, swaps for increased and increasing, and the opposite words. The grow synonyms page covers natural and personal growth in more depth.
Swatch at a glance
Best swaps
raise, boost, grow, rise, expandPart of speech
Verb and nounMost formal
augment, escalate, heightenMost casual
bump up, ramp up, shoot upStrongest
skyrocket, soar, surgeWord forms covered
increases, increased, increasingAntonyms
decrease, reduce, declineWatch out
Rise has no object. Raise needs one. Prices rise; companies raise prices.
Increase synonym chart for verbs and nouns
The first column tells you whether the word needs an object. That single detail prevents most errors.
| Use | Words | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Grows on its own | rise, grow, climb, mount, swell | Ticket sales climbed all week. |
| Someone makes it grow | raise, boost, expand, step up | The school boosted its library fund. |
| Feelings or effects | heighten, intensify, deepen | Music heightened the tension. |
| Noun | rise, growth, gain, jump, hike | A sharp jump in rent hit families. |
Speed and size, step by step
Five colored blocks show how fast or how much. Edge up is a slow, small change, often in markets or temperatures. Rise is neutral. Climb suggests steady effort over time. Surge means a sudden strong burst. Skyrocket is dramatic and works best in headlines or casual talk.
For a lab report, rise and grow keep the tone calm. If numbers more than doubled overnight, surge or soar is fair.
Synonyms for increased and increasing
The adjective forms appear in reports all the time. A good increased synonym is higher, greater or heightened: increased risk becomes a higher risk, increased demand becomes greater demand, increased security becomes heightened security.
A handy increasing synonym is growing, rising or mounting. Mounting suits worries and costs, as in mounting pressure. Growing suits interest and numbers. See the growing synonyms page for more.
As a past verb, another word for increased is rose, grew, climbed or raised, picked by the object rule above.
Sentence swaps
- We increased prices becomes we raised prices.
- Crime increased last year becomes crime rose last year.
- The firm increased its staff becomes the firm expanded its staff.
- They increased their efforts becomes they stepped up their efforts.
- Fear increased in the town becomes fear mounted in the town.
- There was an increase in rent becomes there was a hike in rent.
A resume bullet says: "Increased sales and increased customer numbers." Stronger: "Grew sales by a third and doubled the customer base." A precise verb plus a figure tells the reader what changed and by how much.
Choosing words for growth at work
On resumes, grew, boosted and expanded sound active. In formal reports, augment means add to something that already exists, as in augment the current team. Escalate fits conflicts and costs, and carries a sense of danger. Do not confuse increase with improve or enhance: those are about quality, not amount. For job applications, see the job hunting vocabulary collection.
Little words after increase
Increase by gives the size of the change, increase to gives the new total: fees increased by ten dollars to fifty. The noun takes in for the thing that grew: an increase in wages. Most synonyms copy these patterns, but boost also takes to in the sense of giving a lift: a boost to morale.
Opposite of increase
The main antonyms are decrease, reduce and lower when someone acts, and decline, drop, fall and shrink when the change happens by itself. Cut is direct and common for budgets. Diminish is formal and suits feelings or power. The decrease synonyms and reduce synonyms pages explain the shades.
Frequently asked questions
Which word for increase sounds best on a resume?
Grew, boosted, expanded and raised are strong past tense verbs. Add a number, such as grew traffic by forty percent, so the claim has weight.
Which increase replacements suit formal reports?
Try augment, escalate or heighten. Augment adds to an existing amount, escalate suggests growing danger, and heighten fits feelings.
Is it rise or raise?
Rise has no object: prices rise. Raise needs one: shops raise prices. Increase works both ways, which is why learners mix the other two up.
How can I describe a sudden increase?
Surge, spike, jump and soar all suggest speed. Skyrocket is the most dramatic and best kept for casual writing or headlines.
What word replaces increased in increased risk?
Higher or greater work best: a higher risk, a greater risk. Heightened fits alertness and security.
What is the opposite of increase?
Decrease is the direct antonym. Reduce, lower and cut work when someone acts, while decline, drop and fall describe change on its own.