Approximate

How to spell approximate

11 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce approximate

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does approximate mean?

1. adjectiveClose to the actual figure or position but not exact.
2. verbTo come close to a value, amount, or quality without matching it exactly.

Approximate in a sentence

• adjective

  The builder gave an approximate cost for the kitchen refit.

• verb

  The cheaper paint can approximate the colour of the original wall.

• adjective

  The journey takes an approximate two hours by train.

• verb

  These monthly figures approximate the totals we expect by year end.

Where does approximate come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin approximare, meaning 'to come near to', which was built from the prefix ad- 'to, toward' and proximus, the superlative of prope 'near', so proximus literally meant 'nearest'. The same proximus root survives in everyday English words such as 'proximity' and 'proximate', all carrying the idea of closeness. Late Latin used approximatus as the past participle, and English adopted the term in the early 1400s, first as an adjective describing something that comes close to a value or position without being exact. The verb sense, meaning to come near or to estimate roughly, developed naturally from the same idea of drawing close. The doubled p comes from the Latin prefix ad- assimilating before the p of proximus, which is exactly the spelling trap: one d hidden inside a double p, and a single m before the ending.

How the word is built

• ap- (from ad-: to, toward)
• proxim (from proximus: nearest)
• -ate (adjective/verb suffix)