Trivia Time

Which fictional character is known for having a clumsy romantic approach?

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approach

American  

[uh-prohch] / əˈproʊtʃ /

verb (used with object)

• approaches,
  present (3rd person singular)
• approached,
  past participle,  past
• approaching
  present participle

1. 

   to come near or nearer to.

   The cars slowed down as they approached the intersection.

   Synonyms:

   near

2. to come near to in quality, character, time, or condition; to come within range for comparison.

   As a poet he hardly approaches Keats.

3. to present, offer, or make a proposal or request to.

   to approach the president with a suggestion.

4. to begin work on; set about.

   to approach a problem.

5. to make advances to; address.

6. to bring near to something.

   Antonyms:

   withdraw

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verb (used without object)

• approaches,
  present (3rd person singular)
• approached,
  past participle,  past
• approaching
  present participle

1. to come nearer; draw near.

   A storm is approaching.

2. to come near in character, time, amount, etc.; approximate.

noun

• approaches
  plural

1. the act of drawing near.

   the approach of a train.

2. nearness or close approximation.

   a fair approach to accuracy.

3. any means of access, as a road or ramp.

   the approaches to a city.

4. the method used or steps taken in setting about a task, problem, etc..

   His approach to any problem was to prepare an outline.

5. the course to be followed by an aircraft in approaching for a landing or in joining a traffic pattern.

   The plane's approach to the airport was hazardous.

6. Sometimes approaches. a presentation, offer, or proposal.

7. Military. approaches, works for protecting forces in an advance against a fortified position.

8. Also called approach shot. Golf. a stroke made after teeing off, by which a player attempts to get the ball onto the putting green.

9. Bowling.

   1. the steps taken and the manner employed in delivering the ball.

      He favors a four-step approach.

   2. Also called runway. the area behind the foul line, from which the ball is delivered.

approach British  

/ əˈprəʊtʃ /

verb

1. to come nearer in position, time, quality, character, etc, to (someone or something)

2. (tr) to make advances to, as with a proposal, suggestion, etc

3. (tr) to begin to deal with

   to approach a problem

4. rare (tr) to cause to come near

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noun

1. the act of coming towards or drawing close or closer

2. a close approximation

3. the way or means of entering or leaving; access

4. (often plural) an advance or overture to a person

5. a means adopted in tackling a problem, job of work, etc

6. Also called: approach path. the course followed by an aircraft preparing for landing

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• approacher
  noun
• reapproach
  verb
• approachless
  adjective
• unapproached
  adjective
• unapproaching
  adjective
• well-approached
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• approaches
  plural

Participles

• approaching
  present
• approached
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• approach
  simple
• approaches
  simple
• have approached
  perfect
• has approached
  perfect
• am approaching
  progressive
• are approaching
  progressive
• is approaching
  progressive
• have been approaching
  perfect progressive
• has been approaching
  perfect progressive

Past

• approached
  simple
• had approached
  perfect
• was approaching
  progressive
• were approaching
  progressive
• had been approaching
  perfect progressive

Future

• will approach
  simple
• will have approached
  perfect
• will be approaching
  progressive
• will have been approaching
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of approach

First recorded in 1275–1325; (verb) Middle English a(p)prochen, from Old French aprochier, from Late Latin adpropiāre “to draw near,” equivalent to ad- “to” and propiāre “to draw near,” derivative of Latin propius “nearer” (comparative of prope “near”), replacing Latin appropinquāre; (noun) late Middle English approche, derivative of the verb; see ad- ( def. ), propinquity ( def. )

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Explanation

To approach is to get near something. An airplane is cleared for a final approach just as the wheels approach the landing strip. Approach comes from the Latin word appropriare which means "go nearer to." You can physically approach something, like a waiter going to a table. Or, you can approach a subject, usually one you're a little nervous about — like a new employee might approach her boss about getting a raise. Time can also approach, like winter, midnight, or even old age.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

approach approaches approached approaching

However, if “the widow” is concerned about fairness, this approach might satisfy that concern while appeasing ungrateful adults who are behaving like demanding children.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 9, 2026

In particular there was unhappiness about how Tuchel told them to approach the closing stages of the game after Anthony Gordon had given them a 55th-minute advantage.

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026

He called Mavria’s modular approach a strategy for scaling infrastructure that many in the industry are beginning to adopt.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026

"These early findings give us a strong reason to continue studying oxaloacetate as a potential approach for managing cognitive problems after breast cancer treatment," Ganz said.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2026

At Torak’s approach, it started towards him, then looked back at the she-wolf, yipping indignantly.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

As the COP31 climate summit approaches, host nation Turkey is putting electrification front and centre, touting its renewables boom while pushing its Zero Waste agenda as a way to reduce methane emissions.

From Barron's ● Nov. 8, 2026

The CorCal Outcomes trial investigated two different approaches for determining which patients should be advised to begin statin therapy before experiencing a cardiovascular event.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026

Before dinner is served, a masked man approaches people in the crowd — half in costumes, half in formalwear — in Clifton’s second-story ballroom, once a swing dancing haven.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026

On Thursday, OpenAI became the latest AI giant to unveil a broad commitment governing how it approaches building new data centers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

The basic approach utilizes discovery in terms of music learning, and also is synchronous with many of the 21st-century learning approaches discussed in Chapter 1.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Earlier this year at the Berlin Film Festival, a film executive named Christian Parkes approached Kermode.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026

The international TopoLight consortium approached the challenge from a different direction.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2026

The podcast has been approached by a travel company offering to put together a “Swiftie and The Scholar” trip to the U.K. loosely based on places Jerry has traveled to and mentioned during the podcast.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 7, 2026

Ryan Rakowski approached Friday night’s Southern Section Division 2 opener like it was the last of his high school career.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2026

The men’s boots crunched patches of snow as they approached a wooden shed guarded by armed soldiers.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

With Black Friday approaching, interest in boneless couches has spiked, said Mackenzie Shand, executive editor at BlackFriday.com and RetailMeNot.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 9, 2026

"Our liquid-crystal microcavities can operate even at temperatures approaching 60°C," says Professor Wiktor Piecek from the Military University of Technology, whose group developed the liquid-crystal structures.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2026

The closure includes northbound lanes on State Route 47 approaching Harbor Boulevard, southbound Interstate 110, and Miraflores Avenue.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026

Half an hour later, Vlasenko heard a large drone approaching.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

Holographic signs flash to tell drivers they’re going too fast or to alert them of an exit approaching.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

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