the.com/approximation

means A result or estimate that's close to the exact value but not identical to it — near enough to be useful, not exact enough to be true.

from From Latin approximare, 'to come near to' — built from ad- ('toward') plus proximare ('to come close'), itself from proximus ('nearest, closest'), the superlative of prope ('near'). So the word's bones literally mean 'toward-nearest' — a term that has always been honest about only getting you most of the way there.