- the act of approving
- formal agreement; sanction
- a favourable opinion; commendation
- on approval ⇒ (of articles for sale) for examination with an option to buy or return
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
ap•prov•al /əˈpruvəl/USA pronunciation
n.
See -prob-, -prov-.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- the act of approving or acceptance;
approbation:[uncountable]Her nomination was met with full approval. - permission;
acceptance: [uncountable]The new drug has government approval.[countable]an approval for a mortgage. - a feeling of liking, admiring, or favoring:[uncountable]The teacher smiled at the student with approval.
- Idioms on approval, that may be tried or tested and returned if found not to be satisfactory:We bought the VCR on approval.
See -prob-, -prov-.
ap•prov•al
(ə pro̅o̅′vəl),USA pronunciation n.
- the act of approving;
approbation. - formal permission or sanction.
- Stamps[Philately.]one of a group of selected stamps sent by a dealer to a prospective customer for examination and either purchase or return.
- on approval, without obligation to buy unless satisfactory to the customer upon trial or examination and, otherwise, returnable:We ship merchandise on approval.
- approve + -al2 1680–90
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
approval /əˈpruːvəl/ n
'approval' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
accept
- acceptance
- acclaim
- acclamation
- accolade
- admire
- applaud
- appro
- approbation
- beauty
- blessing
- canny
- carry
- check
- cheer
- congratulate
- credit
- disapprove
- echo chamber
- éclat
- encourage
- endorse
- endorsation
- endorsement
- favour
- good
- good-oh
- goodwill
- goody
- hear
- hot dog
- imprimatur
- initial
- introduce
- like
- nod
- O.K.
- pat
- plaudit
- postulate
- proof
- ratify
- recognize
- render
- smile
- subscribe
- super
- support
- thumb
- abet