tend to

1. Apply one's attention, as in We should tend to our business, which is to teach

youngsters. This term uses tend in the sense of "attend." [1300s]
2. Be disposed or inclined, as in We tend to believe whatever we are told. This term
uses tend in the sense of "have a tendency." [c. 1600]

Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin
Company.

ap·proach
Function: verb
Etymology: Middle English approchen, from Old French aprochier, from Late Latin
appropiare, from Latin ad- + prope near; akin to Latin pro before -- more at FOR
transitive senses
1 a : to draw closer to : NEAR b : to come very near to : be almost the same as <its
mathematics approaches mysticism -- Theodore Sturgeon> <as the quantity x
approaches zero>
2 a : to make advances to especially in order to create a desired result <was approached
by several Broadway producers> b : to take preliminary steps toward accomplishment or
full knowledge or experience of <approach the subject with an open mind>
intransitive senses
1 : to draw nearer
2 : to make an approach in golf
1. To come near or nearer, as in space or time: Spring approaches.
2. Sports. To make an approach, as in golf.

v. tr.

1. To come or go near or nearer to: approached the tunnel.

2. To come close to, as in appearance, quality, or condition; approximate: The
performance approaches perfection.
3. To make a proposal or overtures to with a specific end in view: approached the
administration for a raise.
4. To begin to deal with or work on: approached the task with dread; approached
the issue from a historical perspective.

n.

1. The act of approaching: the approach of night.

2. A fairly close resemblance; an approximation.
3. A way or means of reaching something; an access: an approach to the bridge.
4. The method used in dealing with or accomplishing: a logical approach to the
problem.
5. An advance or overture made by one person to another.

1
 6. Sports.
a. The golf stroke following the drive from the tee with which a player tries
to get the ball onto the putting green.
b. The steps taken prior to executing a competitive maneuver, as by a diver
before diving forward from a springboard or by a bowler before delivering
the ball.
c. The part of the area behind the foul line in a bowling alley used by a
bowler in delivering the ball.

[Middle English approchen, from Old French aprochier, from Late Latin appropi
re : Latin ad-, ad- + Latin propius, nearer, comparative of prope, near; see per1 in
Indo-European Roots.]

[Download or Buy Now]

Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth
Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Main Entry: ap·proach

Pronunciation: &-'prOch
Function: noun
: the surgical procedure by which access is gained to a bodily part

Source: Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster,

Inc.

approach

n 1: ideas or actions intended to deal with a problem or situation; "his approach to every
problem is to draw up a list of pros and cons"; "an attack on inflation"; "his plan of attack
was misguided" [syn: attack, plan of attack] 2: the act of drawing spatially closer to
something; "the hunter's approach scattered the geese" [syn: approaching, coming] 3: a
way of entering or leaving; "he took a wrong turn on the access to the bridge" [syn:
access] 4: the final path followed by an aircraft as it is landing [syn: approach path, glide
path, glide slope] 5: the event of one object coming closer to another [syn: approaching]
6: a tentative suggestion designed to elicit the reactions of others; "she rejected his
advances" [syn: overture, advance, feeler] 7: the temporal property of becoming nearer in
time; "the approach of winter" [syn: approaching, coming] 8: a close approximation; "the
nearest approach to genius" 9: a relatively short golf shot intended to put the ball onto the
putting green; "he lost the hole when his approach rolled over the green" [syn: approach
shot] v 1: move towards; "We were approaching our destination"; "They are drawing
near"; "The enemy army came nearer and nearer" [syn: near, come on, go up, draw near,
draw close, come near] 2: come near or verge on, resemble, come nearer in quality, or
character; "This borders on discrimination!"; "His playing approaches that of Horowitz"
[syn: border on] 3: begin to deal with; "approach a task"; "go about a difficult problem";

2
"approach a new project" [syn: set about, go about] 4: come near in time; "Winter is
approaching"; "approaching old age" [syn: come near] 5: make advances to someone,
usually with a proposal or suggestion; "I was approached by the President to serve as his
adviser in foreign matters"

Source: WordNet ® 2.0, © 2003 Princeton

University

approach

approach: in CancerWEB's On-line Medical Dictionary

Source: On-line Medical Dictionary, © 1997-98 Academic Medical Publishing &

CancerWEB

con·verge
Main Entry: con·verge
Pronunciation: k&n-'v&rj
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): con·verged; con·verg·ing
Etymology: Late Latin convergere, from Latin com- + vergere to bend, incline -- more at
WRENCH
intransitive senses
1 : to tend or move toward one point or one another : come together : MEET
2 : to come together and unite in a common interest or focus
3 : to approach a limit as the number of terms increases without limit
transitive senses : to cause to converge

1.
a. To tend toward or approach an intersecting point: lines that converge.
b. To come together from different directions; meet: The avenues converge
at a central square.
2. To tend toward or achieve union or a common conclusion or result: In time, our
views and our efforts converged.
3. Mathematics. To approach a limit.

v. tr.
To cause to converge.

[Late Latin convergere, to incline together : Latin com-, com- + Latin vergere, to
incline; see wer-2 in Indo-European Roots.]

[Download or Buy Now]

Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth

3
Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

converge

v 1: be adjacent or come together; "The lines converge at this point" [syn: meet] [ant:
diverge] 2: approach a limit as the number of terms increases without limit [ant: diverge]
3: move or draw together at a certain location; "The crowd converged on the movie star"
[ant: diverge] 4: come together so as to form a single product; "Social forces converged to
bring the Fascists back to power"

Source: WordNet ® 2.0, © 2003 Princeton

University