approve
Americanverb (used with object)
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to speak or think favorably of; pronounce or consider agreeable or good; judge favorably.
to approve the policies of the administration.
- Synonyms:
- esteem, appreciate
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to consent or agree to.
Father approved our plan to visit Chicago.
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to confirm or sanction formally; ratify.
The Senate promptly approved the bill.
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Obsolete.
-
to demonstrate; show.
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to make good; attest.
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to prove by trial.
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to convict.
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verb (used without object)
verb
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to consider fair, good, or right; commend (a person or thing)
-
(tr) to authorize or sanction
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obsolete (tr) to demonstrate or prove by trial
verb
Related Words
Approve, commend, praise mean to have, and usually to express, a favorable opinion. To approve is to have a very good opinion, expressed or not, of someone or something: He approved the new plan. To commend is to speak or write approvingly, often formally and publicly, to congratulate or honor for something done: to commend a worker for a job well done. To praise is to speak or write, often in glowing and emotional terms, about one or more persons, actions, plans, etc.: to praise someone's courage.
Other Word Forms
- approvedly adverb
- approvedness noun
- approvingly adverb
- nonapproved adjective
- preapprov verb
- reapprove verb
- self-approved adjective
- self-approving adjective
- unapproved adjective
- unapproving adjective
- unapprovingly adverb
- well-approved adjective
Etymology
Origin of approve
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English a(p)proven, from Anglo-French, Old French aprover, from Latin approbāre, equivalent to ap- ap- 1 + probāre “to prove ”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Israel's security cabinet approved the move ahead of Netanyahu's Washington visit.
From Barron's
The referendum, passed by a simple majority, notes that if approved, it will be "binding on the parties that win" the election.
From Barron's
The City Council has approved a June ballot measure that would temporarily raise the hotel tax.
From Los Angeles Times
The tax, if approved by voters this summer, would last for five years.
From Los Angeles Times
Moderna, a pioneer of mRNA technology, asked the FDA to approve its experimental, mRNA-based vaccine to protect against seasonal influenza in early January, the company said.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
