English
approach
Approach comes from Middle English aprochen, from Old French aprochier, from Late Latin appropiō, a verb based on Latin prope ‘near’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprope1‘near’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEappropiō1‘to approach’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400aprochier1‘to approach’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500aprochen1
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1606approach1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English approach
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, London: […] Nathaniel Butter: “Approach thou beacon [the Sun] to this vnder gloabe,…”.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpropeWiktionary, English approach‘near’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEappropiōWiktionary, English approach‘to approach’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400aprochierWiktionary, English approach‘to approach’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500aprochenWiktionary, English approach
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1606approachWiktionary, English approach. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, London: […] Nathaniel Butter: “Approach thou beacon [the Sun] to this vnder gloabe,…”
Word family
English words that share an ancestor with approach, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.
through Proto-Indo-European *pro- ‘toward, forward’
through Latin prope ‘near’
- proximate ← proximatus ← proximare ← proximus
through Old French aprochier ‘to approach’
- rapprochement ← rapprocher ← approcher
9 more relatives in the full family tree
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Another origin of approach
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500approche‘approach, arrival’
- Englishtodayapproach
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Today it means
verb To come or go near, in place or time; to move toward; to advance nearer; to draw nigh.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “approach”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Latin prope / approach