as in reflects
to come near or nearer to in character or quality
Rob's violin performance last night didn't even approximate what he's really capable of when he's not feeling sick
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Recent Examples of approximates
Forbes approximates that Jenner is worth $670 million.
—
Christopher Edwards, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
Some bakers find that adding lemon juice or vinegar to milk approximates buttermilk’s acidity adequately for their uses.
—Emily Saladino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 20 Mar. 2026
Nordic Knots approximates the color scheme in their percale duvet cover but much more subtly.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 11 Mar. 2026
Its suitability to our climate stems from its origin in the South African Cape Floristic Province, whose climate approximates our own, except our summers are a bit hotter.
—Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 6 Mar. 2026
His new deal approximates the five-year contracts Kyle Schwarber and Alex Bregman received from the Phillies and Cubs, respectively.
—Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
Rather, the league will enter a period of status quo that approximates normal working conditions.
—Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
The following map approximates locations based on Newsweek's review of publicly available sources.
—Nick Mordowanec
john Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
The scene is presented with a color adjustment that approximates white balancing to resemble how the rocks and sand would appear under daytime lighting conditions on Earth.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 Aug. 2019
Christopher Edwards, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
Some bakers find that adding lemon juice or vinegar to milk approximates buttermilk’s acidity adequately for their uses.
—Emily Saladino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 20 Mar. 2026
Nordic Knots approximates the color scheme in their percale duvet cover but much more subtly.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 11 Mar. 2026
Its suitability to our climate stems from its origin in the South African Cape Floristic Province, whose climate approximates our own, except our summers are a bit hotter.
—Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 6 Mar. 2026
His new deal approximates the five-year contracts Kyle Schwarber and Alex Bregman received from the Phillies and Cubs, respectively.
—Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
Rather, the league will enter a period of status quo that approximates normal working conditions.
—Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
The following map approximates locations based on Newsweek's review of publicly available sources.
—Nick Mordowanec
john Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
The scene is presented with a color adjustment that approximates white balancing to resemble how the rocks and sand would appear under daytime lighting conditions on Earth.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for approximates
Verb
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Its continued expansion in Germany reflects both the strength of the creative concept from Lotchi and our team’s expertise in delivering experiences at scale.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
28 Apr. 2026
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Leaders at the college said the reaffirmation reflects continued progress in academics, operations, financial stability, enrollment growth and governance.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Its 28-game start matches the expansion 1962 Mets — who lost 120 games — along with 1964 and 1983 for the second-worst in team history behind an 8-20 opening in 1981.—
Ronald Blum,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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That matches statistical data on trust in medical researchers and scientists in general and is in line with past measures of trust in scientists.—
Dan Vergano,
Scientific American,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Additional storm development is also possible across the Appalachians into the Mid-Atlantic as an upper-level system approaches from the west.—
Brandi D. Addison,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
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As a courtroom showdown between Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively approaches next month, lawyers for the former co-stars continued to hash out key pretrial issues Tuesday before a federal judge.—
Rebecca Keegan,
NBC news,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Approximates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/approximates. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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