What does disapproved mean?
"Disapproved" is the past tense and past participle of the verb "disapprove," meaning to have held an unfavorable opinion of something or to have judged it wrong, improper, or unacceptable. It appears most often in everyday contexts where someone expresses moral or personal objection — one might say a parent disapproved of a child's career choice, or that the public disapproved of a government policy. In more formal or institutional settings, "disapproved" can also mean officially rejected, as when a board disapproved a budget request. The verb typically pairs with the preposition "of" in its subjective sense but stands alone in its official sense. Carrying connotations of judgment, authority, and social norms, the word is useful for describing both private attitudes and formal decisions, and it derives ultimately from the Latin "probare," meaning to test or prove.
verbPast tense and past participle of "disapprove": to have an unfavorable opinion of something or someone; to consider it wrong, unacceptable, or undesirable.
- To have considered something or someone bad, wrong, or unacceptable: 'She disapproved of his lifestyle.'
- (Of an authority) To have rejected or withheld official approval from something: 'The board disapproved the request.'
"The committee disapproved of the proposal before it was even presented."
"Her father strongly disapproved of her decision to leave university."
"The planning committee disapproved the application for the new building."
When your boss says a plan is 'disapproved,' the Latin root is literally saying it hasn't been proven worthy — dis- plus probare, 'to test or approve.'
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of disapproved
"Disapproved" comes from "disapprove," formed from the prefix "dis-" (expressing reversal or negation) combined with "approve." "Approve" itself entered English via Old French "aprouer" from the Latin "probare," meaning to test, try, or judge good — the same root that gives us "prove," "probe," and "probate." The compound "disapprove" arose in English around the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century, joining a wider family of Latinate words built on this root of testing and judging worth.
Related word forms
How disapproved is actually used
"Disapprove" usually takes the preposition "of" when expressing personal dislike or moral objection ("disapproved of his behavior"). Without "of," it often carries the more official sense of formally rejecting or withholding approval. The register is neutral to slightly formal.
Easily confused with disapproved
"Depreciated" means reduced in value or disparaged, whereas "disapproved" simply means regarded with disfavor or objection.