approximate1 adjectiveapproximate2 verb
approximateap‧prox‧i‧mate1 /əˈprɒksəmət $ əˈprɑːk-/ ●●○ W3 AWL adjective 
Word OriginWORD ORIGINapproximate1
ExamplesOrigin:
1400-1500 Late Latin past participle of approximare ‘to come near to’, from Latin ad- ‘to’ + proximare ‘to come near’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- Approximate journey time to London is four hours.
- An expert could give you the approximate value of the painting.
- Our approximate time of arrival will be 10.30.
- Please state on the form the approximate value of all your household goods.
- The approximate cost of materials for the class should be around $25.
- The measurements are approximate, but I think they'll do.
- A more successful variant is one for use with approximate quantities.
- It is possible to make approximate allowance for backspace by releasing the source-machine off play-pause about one second late.
- Not all old photographs are dated, but internal evidence may help to establish an approximate date.
- The size of symbols indicates the approximate error associated with individual readings.
- The time ranges associated with these compositions are rather approximate, but are in general still perfectly valid.
- The weather forecaster does as he should: he attempts to give the approximate atmospheric conditions for the next few days.
Longman Language Activatora number or amount that is approximately right► approximate
Collocations · The measurements are approximate, but I think they'll do.· An expert could give you the approximate value of the painting.· Approximate journey time to London is four hours.
► rough: rough guess/calculation/estimate/indication approximately correct, and therefore not to be used for detailed or important work: · The report should give you a rough indication of the company's stock market performance over the past year.· I'd say that the whole thing would cost you around $1000, but that's just a rough estimate.
► ballpark figure a number or amount that is approximately correct - used especially in business: · A ballpark figure for the cost of the construction is $4.5 million.· A firm price hasn't been set yet, but the ballpark figure under discussion is $3 million.give somebody a ballpark figure: · Could you give me a ballpark figure?
► approximation formal a number or amount that is approximately correct: a reasonable approximation: · Five thousand dollars seems to be a reasonable approximation of the actual cost.
at approximately a particular time or date► about also around especially American a little later or a little earlier than a particular time or date: · It's two-thirty. They should be arriving about now.· The cathedral was completed in about the middle of the 16th century.· About six months ago he suffered a major heart attack.· I picked Sue up around eight o' clock.· I don't remember the exact date of the party, but it must have been around the first of December.round about especially British: · He left the house round about four o'clock.· The job should be finished round about March next year.
► approximately a little later or a little earlier than a particular time or date. Approximately is a little more formal than about or around and is used especially in written English: · The gate will close approximately two minutes before the train leaves.· Tours start approximately every 15-20 minutes in summer.
► some time: some time after/before/around/between/in etc at a time in the past - use this when you do not know exactly when or it is not important exactly when: · The burglary must have happened some time after 8:00 p.m.· His third symphony was written some time between 1750 and 1753.· The clinic was closed some time in the early nineties.
► or thereabouts: at 10 o'clock or thereabouts/in the 1950s or thereabouts etc use this after a time, date etc that is not exact, especially when it is not important to know the exact time, date etc: · They're old apartments, built in the 1930s or thereabouts.· The book will be published in May or thereabouts.
► circa: circa 1920/1850/1492 etc use this when you are saying when something happened in history: · The manuscripts date from circa 400 B.C.· a Robert Adam mansion, built circa 1778· The picture shows Tsar Nicholas, circa 1914.
approximately a number or amount► about a little more or a little less than a number, amount, distance, or time: · It should cost about $1500.· The church is about a mile away.· It's been about five years since I've seen Linda.· The chance of men being born colourblind is about 1 in 12.
► approximately a little more or a little less than a number, amount, distance, or time. Approximately is a little more formal than about and is used especially in written English: · Approximately 30% of the community is Polish.· Each disk stores approximately 144 pages of text.
► roughly approximately - used especially when you are trying to give someone a general idea of the number or amount: · A new kitchen would cost roughly $6,000.· The man was roughly my own age.· There were roughly 50 people there.
► or so: 3 days/a minute/fifteen people etc or so approximately 3 days, a minute etc, or perhaps even more: · The baby usually sleeps for an hour or so after breakfast.· He suggested that I take a week or so off work.· There must be thirty people or so in the class.
► odd informal spoken: a hundred/forty/thirty etc odd use this after numbers in tens, hundreds, or thousands: · "How old do you think he is?'' "Oh, I don't know. Seventy odd.''· It's been 30 odd years since I last saw him.
► give or take spoken: give or take a few miles/a couple of minutes/a pound etc use this when saying approximately what a number or amount is, when it may be a few miles more or less, a few minutes more or less etc: · The village is about fifty miles north of here, give or take a few miles.· He's said to be worth $26 million, give or take a few million.· "How long will the meeting last?" "A couple of hours, give or take."
► at a guess spoken approximately, especially when you do not know the correct number or amount and are guessing what it is: · At a guess, I'd say around 3000 people took part in the demonstration.· It was a cold night. About two or three degrees at a guess.· "How much will it cost?" "A hundred and twenty pounds, at a guess."
not exact► rough not exact, or not containing exact details: · He gave us a rough outline of the course.rough estimate/guess: · I've got a rough estimate here of what it might cost.rough idea: · She had a rough idea of where Harry lived, but she didn't know the exact street.
► approximate formal an approximate number, amount, or time is close to the true number, amount, or time but does not need to be completely correct: · Our approximate time of arrival will be 10.30.· Please state on the form the approximate value of all your household goods.
► vague an explanation, promise, reason etc that is vague is not exact, but you think that it should be: · The doctor's vague explanations only increased Clara's fears.· I've only got a vague idea of what he wants for this project.be vague about (=explain something in a vague way): · Officials were vague about the number of weapons that were uncovered.
► hazy a hazy memory, understanding, idea etc is not clear and not exact: · She had a hazy recollection of being carried out of the room. · The details are still a little hazy.
► loose: loose translation/interpretation/sense etc a record, explanation etc of something that includes parts that are not exactly like what was said, written, or decided originally: · This is only a loose translation of the original paper.· A looser interpretation of the law would lead to more convictions.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► a rough/approximate estimate
Word family (=not exact)· Can you give me a rough estimate of how much the repairs will cost?
► an approximate/rough figure· He gave us an approximate figure for the cost of the repairs.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN► number· To achieve this aim a measure of approximate number of letters in a word is needed.· You should enter an approximate number of 512 byte blocks which this media type can hold.· The optimum size of hash table can only be determined if the approximate number of items to be stored is known.
WORD FAMILYnounapproximationadjectiveapproximateverbapproximateadverbapproximately
an approximate number, amount, or time is close to the exact number, amount etc, but could be a little bit more or less than it SYN rough OPP exact: 
What is the approximate number of students in each class? These percentages are only approximate.RegisterIn everyday English, people usually say rough rather than approximate:· Can you give me a rough idea of how much it would cost?approximate1 adjectiveapproximate2 verb
approximateap‧prox‧i‧mate2 /əˈprɒksɪmeɪt $ əˈprɑːk-/ AWL verb [intransitive, linking verb] formal Verb TableVERB TABLE
approximate
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | approximate |
| he, she, it | approximates | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | approximated |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have approximated |
| he, she, it | has approximated | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had approximated |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will approximate |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have approximated |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am approximating |
| he, she, it | is approximating | |
| you, we, they | are approximating | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was approximating |
| you, we, they | were approximating | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been approximating |
| he, she, it | has been approximating | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been approximating |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be approximating |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been approximating |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Collocations- His snoring approximated the sound of a jet taking off.
- Click on one that most closely approximates the deck you want to build.
- For this reason concentrations of potentially interfering metal ions approximating the serum levels are used in the standards.
- However, if review is drawn too broadly it will approximate to appeal on the merits.
- It approximates to a miniature octavo book, while others in the Dolls' House library are more like reduced folios.
- It becomes critical that the algorithm or program approximates sufficiently, or disaster can occur Smart materials make the situation even worse.
- Sunlight is absorbed by dark surface materials and heats the surface to temperatures that sometimes approximate normal room temperature on Earth.
- That approximated a factor analysis and is conceptually easier to explain.
- The ultimate beauty of the Old Course is that it is not fair, and in that it approximates life.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► a rough/approximate estimate
Word family (=not exact)· Can you give me a rough estimate of how much the repairs will cost?
► an approximate/rough figure· He gave us an approximate figure for the cost of the repairs.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB► closely· Richly-decorated Saloon Bars more closely approximate to the modern idea of a Victorian pub.· Click on one that most closely approximates the deck you want to build.
WORD FAMILYnounapproximationadjectiveapproximateverbapproximateadverbapproximately
1to be close to a particular numberapproximate to This figure approximates to a quarter of the UK’s annual consumption.2to be similar to but not exactly the same as somethingapproximate to Your story only approximates to the real facts.