Etymograph

English

approbation

Approbation comes from Old French approbacion ‘approval’, from Latin probō ‘test, examine’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- ‘to be, become, grow, appear’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰuH-1‘to be, become, grow, appear’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*probʰHwós1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*proβwos1reconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*proβos1‘favourable’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*proβāō1‘to approve’reconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprobō1‘test, examine’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEapprobō2‘to regard as good, approve, favor or favour, commend, endorse’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEapprobātiō3‘the act of approving’
  9. Old Frenchc. 842–1400approbacion4‘approval’
  10. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500approbacioun4
  11. Englishearliest quotation 1796approbation4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin approbo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin approbatio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Old French approbacion
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English approbation
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1796, William Melmoth, The Letters of Pliny the Consul: With Occasional Remarks: “I am very sensible how much nobler it is…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰuH-Wiktionary, Latin approbo‘to be, become, grow, appear’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*probʰHwósWiktionary, Latin approboreconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*proβwosWiktionary, Latin approboreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*proβosWiktionary, Latin approbo‘favourable’reconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*proβāōWiktionary, Latin approbo‘to approve’reconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprobōWiktionary, Latin approbo‘test, examine’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEapprobōWiktionary, Latin approbatio‘to regard as good, approve, favor or favour, commend, endorse’
  8. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEapprobātiōWiktionary, Old French approbacion‘the act of approving’
  9. Old Frenchc. 842–1400approbacionWiktionary, English approbation‘approval’
  10. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500approbaciounWiktionary, English approbation
  11. Englishearliest quotation 1796approbationWiktionary, English approbation. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1796, William Melmoth, The Letters of Pliny the Consul: With Occasional Remarks: “I am very sensible how much nobler it is…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- ‘to be, become, grow, appear’

be, been, power, possible, future, build, present, physical, presence, bush, essential, bound, bond, absence, physician, booth, absent, contribution, entity, favorable, distribute, contributor, bun, favourable, fiat, bouquet, imp, rebuke, impotent, impossibility, retribution, bower, attribution, aren, beamer, bosque, phylogeny, physic, phylum, busk, 82 more

through Proto-Italic *proβos ‘favourable’

probe, probity, 9 more

through Latin probō ‘test, examine’

improve, prove, proof, probability, probable, probate, probative, 12 more

Today it means

noun The act of approving; an assenting to the propriety of a thing with some degree of pleasure or satisfaction; approval, sanction, commendation or official recognition.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “approbation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin approbo, Latin approbatio, Old French approbacion. 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 / Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- / approbation

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