app

1 of 2

noun

ˈap 

1

: application sense 3

a word processing app

especially : an application designed for a mobile device (such as a smartphone)

Health-insurance companies and government officials alike are drawn to the ability of smartphone apps to reach tough-to-access patients, to effect long-term lifestyle changes, and to do it all at a very low cost.

—Marcellus Hall

see also killer app

2

informal : appetizer

… the hidden video monitors that tell the cooks when the V.I.P.'s have finished their apps …

—Thomas McNamee

app

2 of 2

abbreviation

1

apparatus

2

appendix

3

appliance

Examples of app in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Google is not alone in working to join up apps through AI agents. —Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025

Here’s what to know: Are you allowed to use a map app while driving in California? —Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado updated August 27, Sacbee.com, 27 Aug. 2025

In every workshop, in every home visit, in every download of the app, PinkDetect slowly chips away at silence. —Malana Vantyler, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2025

Potential members first see propaganda on encrypted apps such as Telegram or on social media. —Art Jipson, The Conversation, 26 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1981, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing app

• killer app

Rhymes for app

• cap
• chap
• clap
• crap
• flap
• frap
• gap
• hap
• lap
• nap
• nappe
• pap

Kids Definition

app

noun

ˈap

1

: application sense 6

2

informal : appetizer

Medical Definition

app

1 of 2 abbreviation

appendix

APP

2 of 2 abbreviation

amyloid precursor protein

Legal Definition

App

abbreviation

Appeals