The word accelerator has several possible meanings.
- A particle accelerator in physics.
- An accelerator to speed a function in computer hardware.
- Usually in the UK, and sometimes in the US, the pedal (often called the gas pedal in the US) that controls the engine speed of an automobile. See accelerator (car) .
- A substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction, such as the curing of an adhesive. See accelerator (chemistry) .
- The accelerator effect in economics refers to stimulus to private fixed investment that occurs due to growth in aggregate demand.
