approximation
noun
ap·prox·i·ma·tion
ə-ˌpräk-sə-ˈmā-shən 
1
: the act or process of drawing together
2
: the quality or state of being close or near
an approximation to the truth
an approximation of justice
3
: something that is approximate
especially
: a mathematical quantity that is close in value to but not the same as a desired quantity
Examples of approximation in a Sentence
This isn't an exact figure but I think it's a good approximation of what the land is worth.
The color of the paint isn't the exact same color as the vase, but it's a close approximation.
Recent Examples on the Web
That would have given him more complicated Taylor approximations, with exponents greater than 2.
—
Kevin Hartnett, Quanta Magazine, 24 Mar. 2025
And, in many cases, these emulations will be reasonably close approximations to our experience, and will also comprise extensions that go beyond our experiences or abilities to enable ultrahuman augmentation.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 18 Mar. 2025
To demonstrate that point in a video, a researcher told a robot arm to put a bunch of plastic grapes into a clear Tupperware container, then proceeded to shift three containers around on the table in an approximation of a shyster’s shell game.
—Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 12 Mar. 2025
In this context, compression techniques for LLMs have been suggested, with quantization, distillation, pruning and low-rank approximations being dominant and successful in practice.
—Sam Mugel, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for approximation
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Kevin Hartnett, Quanta Magazine, 24 Mar. 2025
And, in many cases, these emulations will be reasonably close approximations to our experience, and will also comprise extensions that go beyond our experiences or abilities to enable ultrahuman augmentation.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 18 Mar. 2025
To demonstrate that point in a video, a researcher told a robot arm to put a bunch of plastic grapes into a clear Tupperware container, then proceeded to shift three containers around on the table in an approximation of a shyster’s shell game.
—Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 12 Mar. 2025
In this context, compression techniques for LLMs have been suggested, with quantization, distillation, pruning and low-rank approximations being dominant and successful in practice.
—Sam Mugel, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for approximation
Cite this Entry
“Approximation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/approximation. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
approximation
noun
ap·prox·i·ma·tion
ə-ˌpräk-sə-ˈmā-shən
1
: a coming near or close (as in value)
2
: something approximate
especially
: an estimate or figure that is almost exact
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