Word.ws English Dictionary

approach

Syllables: ap·proachUK/əˈpɹəʊt͡ʃ//əˈpɹoʊt͡ʃ/

approach verb: to come or go near, in place or time; to move toward; to advance nearer; to draw nigh. Also the ellipsis of approach shot.

Verb

approach (third-person singular simple present approaches, present participle approaching, simple past and past participle approached)

  1. (intransitive) To come or go near, in place or time; to move toward; to advance nearer; to draw nigh.
    • She approached the door cautiously.
    • We were approached by a stranger asking for directions.
  2. (intransitive) To play an approach shot.
  3. (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.
    • The great source, as it appears to me, of the power of the Divine Comedy [by Dante Alighieri], is the strong belief with which the story seems to be told. In this respect, the only books which approach to its excellence are Gulliver's Travels and Robinson Crusoe.1824 January, Tristram Merton [pseudonym; Thomas Babington Macaulay], “Criticisms on the Principal Italian Writers. No. I. Dante.”, in [Charles Knight], editor, Knight’s Quarterly Magazine, volume...
  4. (intransitive, rare, transitive) 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.
    • [T]here appears a seeming mount, made up of trees rising one higher than another, in proportion as they approach the centre.1712 September 16 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison], “FRIDAY, September 6, 1712”, in The Spectator, number 477; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […]...
  5. (also, figuratively, transitive) 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.
    • He approached the age of manhood.
  6. (transitive) To bring (something) near something else; to cause (something) to draw near.
    • "My story is not long," said the artist; "but your honour had better sit while you listen to it." So saying, he approached to the fire a three-footed stool, and took another himself, […]1821 January 8, [Walter Scott], chapter X, in Kenilworth; a Romance. […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; and John Ballantyne, […]; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page...
  7. (transitive) 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.
  8. (transitive) To attempt to make (a policy) or solve (a problem).
    • Mr. Moonlight Quill, mysterious, exotic, and oriental in temperament was, nevertheless, a man of decision. And it was with decision that he approached the problem of his wrecked shop.1922 September, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, “O Russet Witch!”, in Tales of the Jazz Age, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, part II, pages 243–244
  9. (transitive) To bring up or propose to (someone) an idea, question, request, etc.
    • "Why bother publishing my conversations. It has not helped you, and it is not going to help anybody else", said U. G. when I approached him with the idea of publishing excerpts from his conversations with the constant stream of people who go to visit him.1987, Dinesh Vaghela, “Publisher’s Note”, in Uppaluri Gopala Krishnamurti, edited by Terry Newland, Mind is a Myth: Disquieting Conversations with the Man Called U. G., Vallabhvidyanagar, Gujarat...
  10. (archaic, euphemistic, transitive) To have sexual intercourse with (someone).
    • None of you ſhall approche to any that is neere of kinne to him, to vncouer their nakedneſſe: I am the Lord.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Leviticus 18:6, column 1
    Synonyms:
    cohabit, common, company, copulate, couple, engage in sex, exchange flesh, have intimate relations, have marital relations, have sex
  11. (transitive) To take approaches to (a place); to move towards (a place) by using covered roads, trenches, or other works.

Noun

approach (plural approaches)

  1. (also, figuratively) An act of drawing near in place or time; an advancing or coming near.
    • Ah, what a ſigne it is of euill life,
      Where death's approach is ſeene ſo terrible.1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies. […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
    • Nauar had notice of your faire approch.
      And he and his compettitours in oth,
      Were all addreſt to meete you gentle Lady
      Before I came: […]c. 1595–1596 (date written), W. Shakespere [i.e., William Shakespeare], A Pleasant Conceited Comedie Called, Loues Labors Lost. […] (First Quarto), London: […] W[illiam] W[hite] for Cut[h]bert Burby...
  2. An act of coming near in character or value; an approximation.
    • The canine, judging from the figures published by M. [Édouard] Lartet, seems to be less developed than in the male chimpanzees, gorillas and orang. In which character the fossil, if it belonged to a male, makes a nearer approach to the human type; but it is one which many of the inferior monkeys...1859 May 10, Richard Owen, “Appendix B. On the Orang, Chimpanzee, and Gorilla, with Reference to the ‘Transmutation of Species.’”, in On the Classification and Geographical Distribution of the...
  3. (also, figuratively) An avenue, passage, or way by which a building or place can be approached; an access.
    • Where are my lines then? my approaches? views?
      Where are my window-ſongs?[1633], George Herbert, “Dulnesse”, in [Nicholas Ferrar], editor, The Temple. Sacred Poems, and Private Ejaculations, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: […] Thomas Buck and Roger Daniel; and are to be sold...
    • […] he ſaw
      As of the ſun or moon illuming clear
      The palace of Phæacia's mighty King.
      […]
      Maſtiffs, in gold and ſilver, lined the approach
      On either ſide, by art celeſtial framed
      Of Vulcan, guardian of Alcinoüs gate
      For ever, unobnoxious to decay.1791, Homer, “[The Odyssey.] Book VII.”, in W[illiam] Cowper, transl., The Iliad and Odyssey of Homer, Translated into Blank Verse, […], volume II, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], →OCLC, page 151...
    1. (also, figuratively) A path taken to reach the climbing area, for example, from a car park, road, etc.
  4. (figuratively) A manner of making (a policy) or solving (a problem, etc.).
    • Our proposed definitional approach to the data processing-communications dilemma evoked considerable discussion. There is uniform disagreement and confusion as to the regulatory implications of the proposed definitional terms.1980 May 2, “In the Matter of Amendment of Section 64.702 of the Commission’s Rules and Regulations (Second Computer Inquiry): Final Decision”, in Federal Communications Commission Reports: Decisions...
    • Its [the United States Environmental Protection Agency's] initial approach to controlling the amount of lead in the ambient air was to limit lead emissions from automobiles by restricting the amount of lead in gasoline.1980 June 27, J[ames] Skelly Wright, Chief Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, “Lead Industries Association, Inc., Petitioner, v. Environmental Protection...
  5. (archaic) An opportunity of drawing near; access.
    • Honour hath three Things in it: The Vantage Ground to doe Good: The approach to Kings and principall Persons: And the Raiſing of a Mans owne Fortunes.1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of Ambition. XXXVI.”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC, page 221
    • The Learned met with free Approach,
      Although they came not in a Coach.1726, [Jonathan Swift], Cadenus and Vanessa. A Poem, London: […] J. Roberts […], →OCLC, page 21
  6. (also, attributive) The way an aircraft comes in to land at an airport.
    • Most small airplanes maintain a speed well in excess of 1.3 times V_(SO) on an instrument approach. An airplane with a stall speed of 50 knots (V_(SO)) has a normal approach speed of 65 knots.2001, “Aerodynamic Factors”, in Instrument Flying Handbook 2001 (FAA-H-8083-15), Washington, D.C.: Flight Standards Service, Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, →ISBN...
    1. (also, attributive) A specific procedure used for approaching and landing at an airport.
      • We flew the RNAV/GPS A approach to runway 16.
  7. The area before the lane in which a bowler may stand or run up before bowling the ball.

Also used as

approach is also the ellipsis of approach shot.

approach meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Sanskrit

approach in Hindi

5. (transitive, also figuratively) to move toward
आगमन āgman
1. (intransitive) to come or go near, in place or time
समीप आना samīp ānā
act of drawing near in place or time
आना ānā

approach in Tamil

5. (transitive, also figuratively) to move toward
நெருங்கு neruṅku, அண்ணு aṇṇu
1. (intransitive) to come or go near, in place or time
நெருங்கு neruṅku, அணுகு aṇuku, அண்ணு aṇṇu, கிட்டு kiṭṭu
3. (ambitransitive, figuratively) to draw near
நெருங்கு neruṅku
6. (transitive) to bring (something) near something else; to cause (something) to draw near
நெருக்கு nerukku

approach in Malayalam

1. (intransitive) to come or go near, in place or time
സമീപിക്കുക samīpikkuka

approach in Sanskrit

1. (intransitive) to come or go near, in place or time
आचरति ācarati
More languagesFewer languages
approach in Arabic
اِقْتَرَبَ iqtaraba, اِقْتِرَاب iqtirāb, مُقَارَبَة muqāraba, كَيْفِيَّة kayfiyya
approach in Malay
pendekatan
approach in Persian
نزدیک شدن به, نزدیک شدن nazdik šodan, نزدیک کردن nazdik kardan
approach in Vietnamese
lại, lại gần, đến

Examples of approach in a sentence

  • The deadline is fast approaching.
  • It beckoned Scrooge to approach, which he did.1843 December 19, Charles Dickens, “Stave I. Marley’s Ghost.”, in A Christmas Carol. […], London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, pages 35–36:
  • He [Empedocles] was an admirable Poet, and thought even to have approached Homer, in a Poem he writ of Natural Philoſophy; [...]a. 1700 (date written), William Temple, “Some Thoughts upon Reviewing the Essay of Antient and Modern Learning”, in Miscellanea. The Third...
  • Its physical condition is still largely a mystery, but we know now that even in its equatorial region the mid-day temperature barely approaches that of our coldest winter.1895–1897, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, “The Eve of the War”, in The War of the Worlds, London: William Heinemann, published 1898, →OCLC, book...
  • It was the voice of Scrooge's nephew, who came upon him so quickly that this was the first intimation he had of his approach.1843 December 19, Charles Dickens, “Stave I. Marley’s Ghost.”, in A Christmas Carol. […], London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, page 6:

All 40 example sentences with approach

Synonyms of approach

30 more synonymsFewer synonyms

All synonyms of approach

Forms of approach

Verb
third-person singular presentapproaches
present participleapproaching
past participleapproached
pastapproached
Noun
pluralapproaches

Past tense of approach: approached

Plural of approach: approaches

Origin of approach

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.

Words formed from approach

Phrases with approach

Words that rhyme with approach

Questions about approach

What does approach mean?
Approach means to come or go near, in place or time; to move toward; to advance nearer; to draw nigh.
What is approach in Hindi?
Approach in Hindi is आगमन (āgman), समीप आना (samīp ānā), आना (ānā). See Approach meaning in Hindi.
How do you use approach in a sentence?
The deadline is fast approaching.
What part of speech is approach?
Approach can be a verb or a noun.
How do you pronounce approach?
Approach is pronounced /əˈpɹəʊt͡ʃ/ (UK).
What is the past tense of approach?
The past tense of approach is approached.

Words near approach in the dictionary

  1. apprizes
  2. apprizeth
  3. apprizing
  4. apprizings
  5. appro
  6. approach
  7. approach anxiety
  8. approach play
  9. approach shoe
  10. approach shoes
  11. approach shot

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: approach (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-approach.ogg.

Cite this entry: “approach.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/approach. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.