approach
UK /əˈpɹəʊt͡ʃ/ · US /əˈpɹoʊt͡ʃ/ verb, noun
Forms approaches approaching approached
- verb (intransitive) To come or go near, in place or time; to move toward; to advance nearer; to draw nigh. “She approached the door cautiously.”
- verb (intransitive, golf, tennis) To play an approach shot.
- verb (ambitransitive, figuratively) Used intransitively, followed by to: to draw near (to someone or something); to make advances; to approximate or become almost equal. “He approaches to the character of the ablest statesman.”
- verb (transitive, rarely intransitive) Of an immovable object or a number of such objects: to be positioned as to (notionally) appear to be moving towards (a place). “As we drove along the driveway, the trees approaching the house seemed more eerie.”
- verb (transitive, also figuratively) To move toward (someone or something) in place, time, character, or value; to draw nearer to. ““Would counsel please approach the bench?” asked the judge.”
- verb (transitive) To bring (something) near something else; to cause (something) to draw near.
- verb (transitive, mathematical analysis) Used when defining limits, preceded by as: To become arbitrarily close to some value, be it a number, vector or infinity and have an effect on another value.
- verb (transitive) To attempt to make (a policy) or solve (a problem).
- noun (also figuratively) An act of drawing near in place or time; an advancing or coming near.
- noun An act of coming near in character or value; an approximation.
- noun (also figuratively) An avenue, passage, or way by which a building or place can be approached; an access.
- noun (climbing) A path taken to reach the climbing area, for example, from a car park, road, etc.
- noun (figuratively) A manner of making (a policy) or solving (a problem, etc.).
- noun (archaic) An opportunity of drawing near; access.
- noun (aviation, also attributively) The way an aircraft comes in to land at an airport.
- noun A specific procedure used for approaching and landing at an airport. “We flew the RNAV/GPS A approach to runway 16.”
Synonyms
cohabit common company copulate couple engage in sex exchange flesh have intimate relations have marital relations have sex have sexual relations intercourse know know someone in the biblical sense make love mate share a bed sleep together strain bang attack plan of attack approaching coming access approach path glide path glide slope overture advance
Etymology
From Middle English aprochen, borrowed from Old French aprochier (modern French approcher), from Late Latin appropiāre, a verb based on Latin prope (“near”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pro- (a variant of *per- (“before, in front; first”)) + *-kʷe (“suffix forming distributives from interrogatives”)).
From Middle English approche (“approach, arrival”), from approchen, aprochen (“to come or go near, approach; to adjoin, be close by; to enter (someone’s) presence; to be or become involved; to reach (a certain state); to arrive; to befall, happen to; to become similar to, resemble; to be a match for (someone)”); see etymology 1.
Webster’s 1913
- verb To come or go near, in place or time; to draw nigh; to advance nearer.
- verb To draw near, in a figurative sense; to make advances; to approximate; as, he approaches to the character of the ablest statesman.
- verb To bring near; to cause to draw near; to advance. [Archaic] Boyle.
- verb To come near to in place, time, or character; to draw nearer to; as, to approach the city; to approach my cabin; he approached the age of manhood.
Etymology [OE. approchen, aprochen, OF. approcher, LL. appropriare, fr. L. ad + propiare to draw near, prope near.]
Etymology [Cf. F. approche. See Approach, v. i.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “approach”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details