approve

[uh-proov]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR approve ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), ap·proved, ap·prov·ing.

to speak or think favorably of; pronounce or consider agreeable or good; judge favorably: to approve the policies of the administration.

to consent or agree to: Father approved our plan to visit Chicago.

to confirm or sanction formally; ratify: The Senate promptly approved the bill.

Obsolete.

to demonstrate; show.
to make good; attest.
to prove by trial.
to convict.

verb (used without object), ap·proved, ap·prov·ing.

to speak or consider favorably (sometimes followed by of): Mother didn't approve of him. The boss wouldn't approve of the plan. He said that he approved.

Origin of approve

1300–50; Middle English a(p)proven < Anglo-French, Old French aprover < Latin approbāre, equivalent to ap- ap-¹ + probāre to prove

Related formsap·prov·ed·ly, adverbap·prov·ed·ness, nounap·prov·ing·ly, adverbnon·ap·proved, adjectivepre·ap·prove, verb, pre·ap·proved, pre·ap·prov·ing.re·ap·prove, verb, re·ap·proved, re·ap·prov·ing.self-ap·proved, adjectiveself-ap·prov·ing, adjectiveun·ap·proved, adjectiveun·ap·prov·ing, adjectiveun·ap·prov·ing·ly, adverbwell-ap·proved, adjective

Can be confusedapprove endorse

Synonyms for approve

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR approve ON THESAURUS.COM

1. appreciate, esteem. 2, 3. authorize, endorse, validate.

Synonym study

1. 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.

Antonyms for approve

2, 3. reject.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for unapproved

unwarranted, wrongful, unofficial, illegal, unconstitutional, unlawful, unjustified, illegitimate, pirated, unapproved, crooked, dirty, shady, wildcat, no-no, unsanctioned

Examples from the Web for unapproved

Contemporary Examples of unapproved

At Pensacola Christian College, students are banned from watching any television or unapproved movies.
‘Survivor’ Bloggers Join Forces to Reveal Christian Fundamentalist Abuses
Alisa Harris
March 23, 2014
He was recorded saying that Xyrem could be used on patients under age 16, unapproved by the FDA.
Giving Medicine a Dose of Free Speech
David Frum
December 10, 2012
Schlegel also predicted there would be more arrests and beatings at unapproved protests.
Anger Over Elections Fuels More Russian Protest Plans
Anna Nemtsova
December 8, 2011

Historical Examples of unapproved

Already the Government, not unapproved, carries letters and parcels for us.
Arrows of the Chace, v. 2
John Ruskin
The flagellants were a phenomenon of seething, popular passion, outside of the church and unapproved by its authority.
Folkways
William Graham Sumner
We look about our houses and find that which we bought last month unapproved by the current style.
Child and Country
Will Levington Comfort

British Dictionary definitions for unapproved

unapproved

adjective

not having been given approval or sanction

approve

verb

(when intr, often foll by of) to consider fair, good, or right; commend (a person or thing)

(tr) to authorize or sanction

(tr) obsolete to demonstrate or prove by trial

Derived Formsapprovingly, adverb

Word Origin for approve

C14: from Old French aprover, from Latin approbāre to approve, from probāre to test, prove

approve

verb

(tr) law to improve or increase the value of (waste or common land), as by enclosure

Word Origin for approve

C15: from Old French approuer to turn to advantage, from prou advantage

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for unapproved

adj.

early 15c., from un- (1) "not" + past participle of approve.

approve

c.1300, "to demonstrate, prove;" mid-14c., "to attest (something) with authority," from Old French aprover (Modern French approuver) "approve, agree to," from Latin approbare "to assent to as good, regard as good," from ad- "to" (see ad-) + probare "to try, test something (to find if it is good)," from probus "honest, genuine" (see prove).

The meaning extended late 14c. to "to sanction, endorse, confirm formally" then to "assent to (something) as good" (early 15c.), especially in reference to the actions of authorities, parliaments, etc. Related: Approved; approving.