Etymologically
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approach

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /əˈprəʊtʃ/, US /əˈproʊtʃ/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English approchen, aprochen,[2] borrowed from Anglo-Norman approcher, Old French aprochier “to come closer” (modern approcher),[3][4] from Late Latin appropiāre (“to go nearer to”),[3][4][5] from ad- “to” and Late Latin propiāre “to come nearer”, from propius (“nearer”), the comparative of prope (“near”).[4][6][3] It replaced Old English nēahlǣcan.[3] The noun is from the verb.[4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

“To go or come near” in place: about 1300,[4][3] about 1305 in the OED.[7]

Semantic evolution

By the late 14th century the verb also meant to come near in time, and to come near in quality or character, to resemble.[3] To make an overture or proposal to someone is from about 1325.[7] The noun, “the act of drawing near, arrival”, is from the mid-15th century[3] (before 1460 in Barnhart).[4] A way or means of reaching a place is from the 1630s,[3] and advances made toward personal relations from 1642.[7] The figurative sense, a way of dealing with a problem, is attested by 1905,[3] and the final stage of an aircraft's flight before landing by 1930.[3] In golf an approach is a shot toward the green.[8][9]

Timeline

  • c. 1300 – verb, to come near.[4][3]
  • c. 1325 – to make overtures to.[7]
  • late 14th century – to come near in time or quality.[3]
  • before 1460 – noun, a drawing near.[4]
  • 1630s – a way of access.[3]
  • 1905 – a way of dealing with a problem.[3]
  • 1930 – an aircraft's approach.[3]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To come near or nearer in space or time.
  2. To come close to in quality or amount; to approximate.
  3. To speak to someone with a request or proposal.
  4. To begin to deal with (a problem or task).

Noun

  1. The act of coming near.
  2. A method of dealing with something.
  3. A way of reaching a place; an access road.
  4. The final part of an aircraft's flight before landing.
  5. (golf) A shot made toward the green.

Word family

  • approacher
  • approachless
  • unapproached
  • reapproach
  • approachable
  • unapproachable
  • unapproaching
  • reproach
  • approximate
  • propinquity
  • proximity

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  9. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster