English

Alternative forms

• approx. (abbreviation, also for adverb approximately)

Adjective

approximate ‎(comparative more approximate, superlative most approximate)

1. Approaching; proximate; nearly resembling.
2. Nearing correctness; nearly exact; not perfectly accurate.

   Approximate results or values.

   To help carry out its mission, NASA's Genesis spacecraft has on board an ion monitor to record the speed, density, temperature and approximate composition of the solar wind ions.

Synonyms

• close

Antonyms

• exact, precise

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

approximate ‎(third-person singular simple present approximates, present participle approximating, simple past and past participle approximated)

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.

3. To estimate.

Quotations

When you follow two separate chains of thought, Watson, you will find some point of intersection which should approximate to the truth.
— Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax

Translations

Latin

Verb

approximāte

1. second-person plural present active imperative of approximō