Select the most appropriate word to fill in the blank in the given sentence.

Some people think that the credit card culture encourages people to shop compulsively and merely ______ debts.

accumulate

The most appropriate word to fill in the blank is accumulate.

• Accumulate means to gather or pile up over time.
• Formulate means to create or devise (a plan or theory).
• Stimulate means to excite or rouse to activity.
• Simulate means to give the appearance or effect of something, especially something not actually present.