Adjacent Words

Approximate definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

APPROX'IMATE, a. [L. ad and proximus, next. See approach.]
Nearest to; next; near to. [This word is superseded by proximate.]
APPROX'IMATE, v.t. To carry or advance near; to cause to approach.
To approximate the inequality of riches to the level of nature.
APPROX'IMATE, v.i. To come near; to approach.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: not quite exact or correct; "the approximate time was 10 o'clock"; "a rough guess"; "a ballpark estimate" [syn: approximate, approximative, rough]
2: very close in resemblance; "sketched in an approximate likeness"; "a near likeness" [syn: approximate, near]
3: located close together; "with heads close together"; "approximate leaves grow together but are not united" [syn: approximate, close together] v
1: be close or similar; "Her results approximate my own" [syn: approximate, come close]
2: judge tentatively or form an estimate of (quantities or time); "I estimate this chicken to weigh three pounds" [syn: estimate, gauge, approximate, guess, judge]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Late Latin approximatus, past participle of approximare to come near, from Latin ad- + proximare to come near — more at proximate Date: 15th century 1. located close together <approximate leaves> 2. nearly correct or exact <an approximate solution> • approximately adverb II. verb (-mated; -mating) Date: 15th century transitive verb 1. a. to bring near or close b. to bring (cut edges of tissue) together 2. to come near to or be close to in position, value, or characteristics <a child tries to approximate his parents' speech> intransitive verb to come close — usually used with to

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & v. --adj. 1 fairly correct or accurate; near to the actual (the approximate time of arrival; an approximate guess). 2 near or next (your approximate neighbour). --v.tr. & intr. (often foll. by to) bring or come near (esp. in quality, number, etc.), but not exactly (approximates to the truth; approximates the amount required). Derivatives: approximately adv. approximation n. Etymology: LL approximatus past part. of approximare (as AD-, proximus very near)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Approximate Ap*prox"i*mate, a. [L. approximatus, p. p. of approximare to approach; ad + proximare to come near. See Proximate.] 1. Approaching; proximate; nearly resembling. 2. Near correctness; nearly exact; not perfectly accurate; as, approximate results or values. Approximate quantities (Math.), those which are nearly, but not, equal.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Approximate Ap*prox"i*mate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Approximated; p. pr. & vb. n. Approximating.] 1. To carry or advance near; to cause to approach. To approximate the inequality of riches to the level of nature. --Burke. 2. To come near to; to approach. The telescope approximates perfection. --J. Morse.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Approximate Ap*prox"i*mate, v. i. To draw; to approach.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(approximating, approximated) 1. An approximate number, time, or position is close to the correct number, time, or position, but is not exact. The approximate cost varies from around £150 to £250... The times are approximate only. ? exact ADJ • approximately Approximately $150 million is to be spent on improvements. ADV: ADV num 2. An idea or description that is approximate is not intended to be precise or accurate, but to give some indication of what something is like. They did not have even an approximate idea what the Germans really wanted. ADJ 3. If something approximates to something else, it is similar to it but is not exactly the same. Something approximating to a fair outcome will be ensured... By about 6 weeks of age, most babies begin to show something approximating a day/night sleeping pattern. VERB: V to n, V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. a. 1. Proximate, approaching coming near. [Followed by to.] 2. Nearly correct, nearly accurate or true, inexact, almost exact. II. v. a. (Rare.) Bring near, cause to approach. III. v. n. Approach, come near, closely resemble, nearly rival.

Moby Thesaurus

accost, advance, advancing, ape, appear like, approach, approaching, appropinquate, approximating, approximative, arm-in-arm, assimilate, attracted to, be around, be like, be near, be redolent of, bear down on, bear down upon, bear resemblance, bear up, begin to, bring near, bring to mind, burning, call, call to mind, call up, cheek-by-jowl, close, close in, close with, come, come close, come closer, come forward, come near, come on, come up, coming, comparable, compare with, confront, connaturalize, copy, correspond, counterfeit, draw near, draw nigh, drawn to, encounter, estimated, evoke, favor, follow, forthcoming, gain upon, get warm, hand-in-hand, homologous, hot, imitate, imminent, imprecise, inaccurate, incorrect, inexact, intimate, judge, lax, like, look like, loose, match, mimic, mirror, much at one, much the same, narrow the gap, near, near the mark, nearing, nearish, nearly reproduce, nearly the same, negligent, nigh, nighish, not tell apart, oncoming, out of line, out of plumb, out of square, out of true, parallel, partake of, place, propinque, proximal, proximate, put, quasi, reckon, relatable, relative, remind one of, resemble, rough, rude, same but different, savor of, seem like, side-by-side, sidle up to, similar, similarize, simulate, smack of, sound like, stack up with, step up, suggest, take after, to come, unfactual, unprecise, unrigorous, upcoming, verge on, vicinal, warm