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.
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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)
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(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.
Both technologies are approved for use in clinical and research settings.
From Science Daily
The rink in Milan, approved by the International Ice Hockey Federation, is shorter than the minimum requirement in the NHL, leading to suggestions there could be an increase in high-speed collisions.
From BBC
Specifically, the district is spending more than $2 billion than it is taking in, based on the approved budget for the current year.
From Los Angeles Times
A few hours later, the National Assembly approved a new hydrocarbons law to ease the path for foreign investment in oil—ending a quarter-century of state-imposed barriers to entry for most international energy companies.
The bill has yet to be approved by the US House of Representatives, which is out of session.
From BBC
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.
