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

---

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

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. )

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

Only a year before, the CQC had been warned by another inquiry into baby deaths at Morecambe Bay NHS Trust that it needed to take a tougher approach.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

Because AI doesn’t experience the consequences of the decisions it makes, it may take an ends-justify-the-means approach to its objectives unless given explicit parameters.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

The rest appear to expect an in-between approach.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

This approach to management means raising the alarm becomes difficult - a concern that has been repeated again and again in inquiries into other scandals.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

It looked a lot bigger than thirteen feet to Chase, and it hadn’t moved an inch during their noisy approach.

From "Storm Runners" by Roland Smith

“More equal-weight approaches or active management might be better compliments for investors looking for diversification,” Rinehart said.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026

The two approaches produced many similar effects, and most physiological measurements remained stable.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 12, 2026

Alex has reported on the business and science of healthcare, including the rise of GLP-1 drugs, experimental medicines and new approaches to diagnosing and treating disease.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

As the due date rapidly approaches, they were given a hospital tour as an accessibility requirement.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

If you watch a train coming at you, you will see that its headlight gets brighter and brighter as it approaches.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

At the same time, the 2-year Treasury yield moved higher and the 10-year briefly approached 5%.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

By the time the White Sox job re-emerged before the 2025 season, Venable said he had been approached by nearly half the league.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

The constable said he shouted "loudly" that it was police as he approached the car, while in possession of his warrant card and radio.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

Questioning such an established concept was not something the researchers initially approached lightly.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

The trouble began as he approached Earth’s magnetic north pole.

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

With colder weather approaching, she said many households could face difficult decisions over heating their homes.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

Both companies have filed confidential IPO documents with US regulators and are targeting public listings at valuations approaching $1 trillion.

From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026

But for a quarter-century, despite repeated attempts and enemies who seek America’s destruction, the U.S. hasn’t suffered another terrorist attack remotely approaching the destruction of Sept. 11.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

Sowing behind-the-scenes stories about how he’s actually approaching it like a responsible statesman could play to his advantage.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

Summer was fast approaching, and the days were already growing long and hot.

From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown

Related Words

• attitude
• concept
• idea
• manner
• means
• method
• mode
• procedure
• program
• style
• technique
• way