approve
English
Pronunciation
- (General American, Received Pronunciation) enPR: ə-pro͞ovʹ, IPA(key): /əˈpɹuːv/
- Rhymes: -uːv
Audio (UK) (file) - Hyphenation: ap‧prove
Etymology 1
From Middle English aproven, appreoven, appreven, apreven, borrowed from Old French aprover, approver, approuvir, appreuver (“to approve”), from Latin approbō, from ad + probō (“to esteem as good, approve, prove”). Doublet of approbate. Compare prove.
Verb
approve (third-person singular simple present approves, present participle approving, simple past and past participle approved)
- (transitive) To officially sanction; to ratify; to confirm; to set as satisfactory.
- 2013 August 10, “Can China clean up fast enough?”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848:
- It has jailed environmental activists and is planning to limit the power of judicial oversight by handing a state-approved body a monopoly over bringing environmental lawsuits.
- Although we may disagree with it, we must nevertheless approve the sentence handed down by the court-martial.
-
- (transitive) To regard as good; to commend; to be pleased with; to think well of.
- We approve the measure of the administration, for it is an excellent decision.
- (transitive, archaic) To make proof of; to demonstrate; to prove or show practically.
- 1848, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession Of James II
- He had approved himself a great warrior.
- 1844, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays: Second Series
- Opportunities to approve […] worth.
- 1812-1818, Lord Byron, Child Harolde's Piligrimage
- 'T is an old lesson; Time approves it true.
- 1764, Horace Walpole, The Castle of Otranto, III:
- He had long burned with impatience to approve his valour.
- 1848, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession Of James II
- (intransitive, followed by "of") To consider worthy (to); to be pleased (with); to accept.
- Her mother never approves of any of her boyfriends. She thinks nobody is good enough for her little girl.
- 2016, Mitski, Your Best American Girl
- Your mother wouldn't approve of how my mother raised me. But I do, I think I do. And you're an all-American boy
- 1995, The Verve, A Northern Soul
- Dad didn't approve of me, do you? I'm alive with something inside of me.
- 1848, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession Of James II
- They had not approved of the deposition of James.
- 1758, Jonathan Swift, The History of the Four Last Years of the Queen
- Their address was in the most dutiful manner, approving of what her majesty had done toward a peace, and dissolve her parliament
- (archaic, transitive, usually with a reflexive pronoun) To show to be worthy; to demonstrate the merits of.
- a. 1729, John Rogers, The Duty and Advantageous of Trust in God
- The first care and concern must be to approve himself to God.
- a. 1729, John Rogers, The Duty and Advantageous of Trust in God
Conjugation
Conjugation of approve
| infinitive | (to) approve | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| present tense | past tense | ||
| 1st-person singular | approve | approved | |
| 2nd-person singular | approve, approvest† | approved, approvedst† | |
| 3rd-person singular | approves, approveth† | approved | |
| plural | approve | ||
| subjunctive | approve | approved | |
| imperative | approve | — | |
| participles | approving | approved, approven† | |
†Archaic or obsolete.
Derived terms
- approbation
- approvable
- approvably
- approval
- approved school
- approver
- I approve this message
Translations
to sanction officially; to ratify; to confirm; as, to approve the decision of a court-martial
|
to regard as good; to commend; to be pleased with; to think well of
|
(archaic in English) to make proof of; to demonstrate; to prove or show practically
|
to make or show to be worthy of approbation or acceptance
|
(archaic in English) to show to be worthy; to demonstrate the merits of
Etymology 2
From Middle English approuen, approven, from Old French aprouer; a- + a form apparently derived from the pro, prod, in Latin prōsum (“be useful or profitable”). Compare with improve.
Verb
approve (third-person singular simple present approves, present participle approving, simple past and past participle approved)
- (transitive, law, English law) To make profit of; to convert to one's own profit — said especially of waste or common land appropriated by the lord of the manor.
References
- approve in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
Chinese
Etymology
From English approve.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /aː²² puːf⁵⁵/
Verb
approve
- (Hong Kong Cantonese) to approve
- 其實我見到佢批咗，跟番嗰個牌子，佢approve嘅呢，我就——批咗，我就冇去詳細睇㗎嘞。 [Cantonese, trad.]
- From: 2016, 翁國財 [Yung Kwok Choi], 食水含鉛超標調查委員會 [Commission of Inquiry into Excess Lead Found in Drinking Water], P.60 of transcript
- kei4 sat6 ngo5 gin3 dou3 keoi5 pai1 zo2, gan1 faan1 go2 go3 paai4 zi2, keoi5 approve ge3 ne1, ngo5 zau6 — pai1 zo2, ngo5 zau6 mou5 heoi3 coeng4 sai3 tai2 gaa3 laak3. [Jyutping]
- (please add an English translation of this example)
其实我见到佢批咗，跟番嗰个牌子，佢approve嘅呢，我就——批咗，我就冇去详细睇㗎嘞。 [Cantonese, simp.]