approve
verb (used with object)
to speak or think favorably of; pronounce or consider agreeable or good; judge favorably.
were approving
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past progressiveof approve.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
We don’t know exactly what those voters thought they were approving when they enshrined this into their founding charter.
From Slate ● Jan. 10, 2026
Small banks granted about 20% of loan applications this February, but they were approving about half of all requests back in early 2020, before the pandemic hit.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 11, 2023
He said councils were approving 90% of planning permissions but "are often frustrated when approved homes aren't built quickly enough" and needed new freedoms and powers to bring about a "renaissance in council house building".
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2017
Even public insurers were approving surgical procedures that, until recently, were accessible only to those who could pay out of pocket, despite medical consensus about their safety and efficacy.
From New York Times ● Dec. 12, 2015
And they were approving his words and were possessed with great wrath against Areobindus, but while this was going on Areobindus together with Artabanes and his followers came there.
From History of the Wars, Books III and IV The Vandalic War by H. B. Dewing
