approximately

adverb

ap·​prox·​i·​mate·​ly ə-ˈpräk-sə-mət-lē 

: in an approximate manner

an event in ancient history that can only be approximately dated

—used to indicate that a stated number, amount, or value is an approximation

Approximately [=around, about] 2,000 people attended the rally.

arrived at approximately 11:30 in the morning

During a lifetime, a person will take approximately 500 million breaths.

—Arthur S. Slutsky, M.D., et al.

Synonyms of approximately

• roughly
• about
• around

Examples of approximately in a Sentence

it takes approximately three hours to drive to Dallas

Recent Examples on the Web

Each year, approximately a hundred senior officers from across all branches of the armed forces enroll in world-class courses of study at schools such as Harvard, Princeton, and Georgetown as part of the Senior Service College Fellows Program. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026

Over the first two rounds, ESPN/ABC will broadcast approximately 18 games, NBA/Peacock will carry approximately 28 games, while Prime will carry approximately one-third of the games. —Lauren Williams, AJC.com, 13 Apr. 2026

After the Kid Laroi guest number switched things up a bit about a half-hour in, he was joined by those two guitarists for an approximately 20-minute acoustic set, which really got everyone relaxed (and/or antsy, in the case of those still uneasy at the resistance to oldies). —Chris Willman, Variety, 12 Apr. 2026

The Vatican has stated that approximately 80% of the population of Equatorial Guinea are Catholic. —Paul Tilsley, FOXNews.com, 12 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1742, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for approximately

• proximately

Kids Definition

approximately

adverb

ap·​prox·​i·​mate·​ly

-mət-lē

: reasonably close to

approximately 5 miles

at approximately six o'clock