Definition of "approbative" [ap•pro•ba•tive]

• Expressing approval (adjective)
• Sanctioning officially, giving authorization or approval to something. (adjective)
• A word or grammatical form which denotes a positive affect expressing the appreciation or approval of the speaker. (noun)

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• "This time I smiled in good earnest at his fantastic fashion of self-introduction, observing which the blue gentleman swayed me backwards and forwards several times with his right hand, and I felt that if I had been an oak of the forest he would have swayed me just as easily, while he said with a kind of approbative chuckle: 'That's right -- a very good lad; that's right -- a very smart lad.'"
• "These terms are neither approbative nor disapprobative in themselves."
• "A more concise, equally accurate but less approbative way of putting this would be simply that he "smokes.""