noun
- the act of approving; approbation.
- formal permission or sanction.
- Philately. one of a group of selected stamps sent by a dealer to a prospective customer for examination and either purchase or return.
Idioms
- on approval, without obligation to buy unless satisfactory to the customer upon trial or examination and, otherwise, returnable: We ship merchandise on approval.
noun
- the act of approving
- formal agreement; sanction
- a favourable opinion; commendation
- on approval (of articles for sale) for examination with an option to buy or return
n.1680s, from approve + -al (2). According to OED, “Rare bef. 1800; now generally used instead of” approvance (1590s, from French aprovance). To be returned if not satisfactory, as in They’re offering custom-made shoes, manufactured from a computer design, on approval. This expression, applied nearly always to the purchase of goods, was first recorded in 1870. see on approval; seal of approval.