Synonyms of approach

approach 1 of 2

noun

1

as in route

an established course for traveling from one place to another

will take the standard landing approach from the south

Synonyms & Similar Words

• route
• path
• way
• road
• avenue
• highway
• passage
• artery
• walk
• trail
• track
• roadway
• street
• bypass
• lane
• thoroughfare
• pass
• drive
• passageway
• walkway
• boulevard
• pike
• expressway
• freeway
• row
• turnpike
• bypath
• routeway
• byway
• channel
• high road
• airway
• laneway
• door
• portal
• gate
• doorway
• waterway
• trace
• gateway
• hatch
• watercourse
• cycleway
• bikeway
• gat

2

as in method

the means or procedure for doing something

that's a different approach to knitting, but it seems to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• method
• strategy
• methodology
• way
• technique
• manner
• system
• tactics
• style
• how
• recipe
• plan
• process
• fashion
• form
• tack
• model
• mode
• route
• program
• policy
• scheme
• design
• practice
• layout
• step
• blueprint
• shift
• move
• game
• routine
• plot
• modus operandi
• game plan
• line
• ground plan
• expedient
• intrigue

approach

2 of 2

verb

ə-ˈprōch 

1

as in to come

to come near or nearer

the parade's approaching! I can hear the band playing!

Synonyms & Similar Words

• come
• close
• come up
• draw on
• near
• close in
• reach
• arrive
• belly up
• attain
• land
• nigh
• turn up
• hit
• show up
• gain
• sneak up
• touch
• make
• creep up
• border
• verge
• waltz (up)
• adjoin

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• retreat
• withdraw
• retire
• recede
• back (up or away)
• go
• remove
• leave
• run away
• walk out
• exit
• pull out
• clear out
• take off
• depart
• quit
• shove (off)
• light out

2

as in to enter

to move closer to

approach the bull with caution

Synonyms & Similar Words

• come
• enter
• near
• advance
• drop in
• nigh
• pop (in)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• go
• withdraw
• retreat
• leave
• recede (from)
• depart
• exit

3

as in to approximate

to come near or nearer to in character or quality

his store-bought dessert doesn't even approach your homemade version of it

Synonyms & Similar Words

• approximate
• compare (with)
• measure up (to)
• reflect
• match
• stack up (against or with)
• parallel
• hold a candle to
• mirror
• amount (to)
• come (to)
• add up (to)
• touch (on)
• duplicate
• equal
• verge (on)
• border (on)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of approach

Noun

Jay Caspian Kang argues that personalizing the problem of an unequal school system is the wrong approach. — Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026

That apathetic approach, which starts off pretty funny, becomes increasingly vexing, especially when the film takes a turn that requires some actual fire from Johnson’s performance. — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026

Verb

Both Kushner and his fellow envoy Witkoff have described approaching diplomacy as businessmen, identifying what each side wants, resolving obstacles and brokering deals. — Allegra Goodwin, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2026

As the cloud approached me, a change in the pressure of the dream medium would pin me down by the chest, leaving me unable to breathe. — Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026