# apply

Pronunciation: say "uh-PLY" /əˈplaɪ/

## Verb

1. To put something to use, employing it for a particular purpose or in a particular case.
   - Simple: To use something for a certain purpose or in a certain situation.
   - _Teachers apply different methods depending on the students in the room._
   - _The committee applied the new guidelines to every pending case._
2. To have relevance or bearing on a particular person, thing, or situation.
   - Simple: To be true or relevant in a certain case or for certain people.
   - _The new tax law applies only to incomes above a certain level._
   - _Many of these warnings apply equally to beginners and experts._
3. To make a formal request, usually in writing, for something such as a job, a place, or permission, or to a person or body that can grant it.
   - Simple: To ask formally for something, like a job or a place at a school, often by filling in a form.
   - _Hundreds of students apply to that university every year._
   - _He decided to apply for the manager position last week._
4. To lay or place one thing onto another, bringing it into direct contact with a surface.
   - Simple: To put or spread something onto a surface.
   - _Nurses apply a clean bandage once the wound has been cleaned._
   - _He applied firm pressure to the cut to stop the bleeding._
5. To use, declare, or pronounce something as suitable, fitting, or relevant in a particular case.
   - Simple: To say that a word or idea fits a person or thing.
   - _Critics apply the term "masterpiece" too freely these days._
   - _Early naturalists applied the name "tiger" to almost any large striped cat they came across._
6. To give one's full effort and attention to a task or piece of work, working at it diligently.
   - Simple: To work hard at something and give it all your attention.
   - _Students who apply their minds to a subject early tend to master it._
   - _He applied his whole mind to solving the puzzle._

## Verb

7. To keep someone busy at work; to set a person steadily to a task. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To keep someone busy and at work.
8. To go to visit a place or person. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To go to and visit a place or person.

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Alternative spelling of appley. Rare.

## Origin

Latin 'applicō' ("join, fix, or attach to"), made of 'ad' and 'plicō' ("fold, twist together"), gave Old French 'applier', and Middle English took it as 'aplien'.

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