application
noun
Simple meaning
a computer program or software used for a specific job
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
apluhkayshuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
æpləˈkeɪʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A verbal or written request for assistance or employment or admission to a school
“December 31 is the deadline for applications.”
The act of bringing something to bear; using it for a particular purpose
“He advocated the application of statistics to the problem.”
The act of applying as a means; the employment of means to accomplish an end; specific use.
Liquid preparation having a soothing or antiseptic or medicinal action when applied to the skin
computing
A computer program or the set of software that the end user perceives as a single entity as a tool for a well-defined purpose. (Also called: application program; application software.)
The substance applied.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A verbal or written request for assistance or employment or admission to a school
Used this way, application is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in business or professional and education or classroom contexts.
“December 31 is the deadline for applications.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Business/professional
- Education/classroom
Nearby words
- application program , a specialist term, precise but narrower
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Verbalnoun
“December 31 is the deadline for applications.”
Bringingnoun
“He advocated the application of statistics to the problem.”
More ways to use application
- “December 31 is the deadline for applications.”noun
- “He advocated the application of statistics to the problem.”noun
- “He has tried several different word processing applications.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A language whose statements resemble terminology of the user.
A program that gives a computer instructions that provide the user with tools to accomplish a task.
A program that gives a computer instructions that provide the user with tools to accomplish a task.
A form to use when making an application.
An application for a line of credit.
An application for a job.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: verbal or written request for assistance or employment
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.