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grow, grow the economy

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  Ed Good  —  Grammar Tips
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The verb grow is typically intransitive because it describes a process undergone by the subject. Thus:

The business grew rapidly.

When used as a transitive verb, grow traditionally meant “to grow crops or to grow a beard.”

These days, however, some people have converted grow into a transitive verb. Thus we see:

Our policies will grow the economy.

This usage originated in Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign. Since then, most politicians and many members of the media use the expression.

Personally, I prefer to restrict the transitive definition of grow to beans and beards, and we urge you to do the same.

Example: The farmer’s business grew rapidly when he decided to grow barley.

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