To set on fire or ignite; to kindle or inflame.
From Latin accendere, composed of ad- (to) + candere (to shine or glow). This is the same root that gives us 'candle' and 'incandescent,' all ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to shine.'
Accend is rarely used today, but its Latin root candere connects it to words about light and heat across many languages—the idea that fire makes things glow is built right into the etymology!
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