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A.Word.A.Day--approbation approbation (ap-roh-BAY-shun) noun Approval, praise, commendation, official sanction. [From Latin approbation, from ap- + probatus, from probare (to test the goodness of).] What do the words approve, prove, probe, probate, probity, and probation have in common? They are all derived from the same root and involve the idea of testing the goodness of something or someone. -Anu "I wrote for their Amendment, and not their Approbation." Jonathan Swift, Gulliver's Travels, 1726. This week's theme: Words from Gulliver's Travels. To read the full text of the book and the research behind it, visit http://www.jaffebros.com/lee/gulliver/ X-Bonus You campaign in poetry. You govern in prose. -Mario M Cuomo, 52nd Governor of NY (1932- )

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