approximate

adj

1. Approaching; proximate; nearly resembling.
2. Nearing correctness; nearly exact; not perfectly accurate.

   “approximate results or values”

   “NASA’s Genesis spacecraft has on board an ion monitor to record the speed, density, temperature and approximate composition of the solar wind ions.”

3. Drawn close together, but not united.

noun

1. (rare)An approximate result or quantity.

verb

1. (ambitransitive)To estimate.

   “I approximated the value of pi by taking 22 divided by 7.”

   “As yet, we don't know what the comparable figures will be like for the current financial year which ends in March 2022, but we can have a good stab at approximating them.”

2. (transitive)To come near to; to approach.

   “When you follow two separate chains of thought, Watson, you will find some point of intersection which should approximate to the truth.”

   “The telescope approximates perfection.”

3. (transitive)To carry or advance near; to cause to approach.

   “to approximate the inequality of riches to the level of nature”