# apex

Pronunciation: US say "AY-peks" /ˈeɪ.pɛks/; UK

## Noun

1. The highest point or top of something, especially where it forms a point, as of a triangle, cone, or tower.
   - Simple: The top or highest point of something, especially a pointed top.
   - _Workers bolted a red beacon light to the apex of the radio tower._
   - _Snow lingered on the apexes of the barn roofs long after the fields had thawed._
2. The moment when something reaches its greatest success, growth, or extent.
   - Simple: The time when something is most successful or at its biggest.
   - _At the apex of its power, the trading company controlled ports on three continents._
   - _Many fans consider the band's third album the apex of its creative run._
3. The top of the food chain, used before a noun to describe the animals or species that occupy it.
   - Simple: The very top of the food chain, used before a word like predator.
   - _Removing an apex predator such as the wolf can let deer numbers climb out of control._
   - _Researchers tracked how the loss of apex species changed the whole ecosystem._
4. The pointed end or tip of a part of a body or plant, such as the tongue, heart, or a leaf.
   - Simple: The pointed tip or end of a body part or of a leaf or petal.
   - _The petals are white, with a faint pink blush toward the apex._
   - _Leaves of this species are oval, with rounded apices and heart-shaped bases._
5. The part of a corner at which the racing line passes closest to the inside of the bend.
   - Simple: The spot in a turn where the best path for a race car comes closest to the inside.
   - _He clipped the apex of turn four and carried more speed onto the straight._
   - _A late apex lets the rider open the throttle earlier on the exit._
6. The growing point at the tip of a plant shoot, where new growth forms.
   - Simple: The tip of a plant's shoot, where new growth happens.
   - _Under the microscope, the dome-shaped shoot apex was ringed by tiny developing leaves._
   - _Deer had browsed off the apex of every sapling, leaving the young trees stunted and forked._
7. In lettering, the sharp upward point formed by two strokes meeting at an acute angle, as in capital A or W, or by a tapered stroke, as in lowercase t.
   - Simple: The sharp top point of a letter like A, where two lines meet, or the pointed top of t.
   - _The designer lowered the apex of the capital A so it would not crowd the line above._
   - _In this typeface, the apex of the lowercase t rises only slightly above the crossbar._

## Other meanings

- (noun) A diacritic of Classical Latin, shaped much like an acute accent, sometimes written over a vowel to show that it was long.
- (noun) The point on the celestial sphere that the Sun appears to be heading toward, judged by its motion relative to nearby stars.
- (noun) The end or edge of a mineral vein that lies nearest the surface of the ground.
- (noun) The lowest point of a pendant drop, that is, a drop of liquid hanging down from where it is attached.
- (noun) An obstacle for a horse to jump, built as a fence that forms a triangular corner.
- (noun) A diacritic used in writing Middle Vietnamese to indicate the sound /ŋ͡m/.
- (noun) A conical cap worn by certain priests of ancient Rome, especially the flamines.

## Origin

Borrowed from Latin apex, meaning “point, tip, summit”.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/apex (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).