Approbate
/ˈæp.rə.beɪt/noun
To officially approve or sanction something.
Did you know?Approbate comes from Latin roots meaning “to prove toward,” and in older legal/religious English it could feel like a formal act of ratifying something as valid.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰer-
“to carry, bear”
Latin
Latin
probare
“to test, prove, approve”
Late Latin
Latin
approbare
“to approve, confirm”
Middle English
English
approben
“to approve, sanction”
16th Century
English
approbate
“to approve formally or officially”
Modern English
English
approbate
“to officially approve or sanction”