application programming interface

noun

variants or less commonly application program interface
computing
: a set of rules that allows programmers to develop software for a particular operating system without having to be completely familiar with that operating system
To fix this problem, trustbusters have installed a provision forcing Microsoft to disclose more information about its so-called application programming interfaces, or APIs.Business Week
abbreviation API

Examples of application programming interface in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The same goes for those using OpenAI's services via an application programming interface (API). Ina Fried, Axios, 2 Dec. 2024 The startup plans to release the AI agent as a research preview and through its application programming interface (API), OpenAI leaders reportedly told staff in a meeting Wednesday. Britney Nguyen, Quartz, 13 Nov. 2024 Then, in January 2023, a misconfigured application programming interface exposed personal data for 37 million current customers, marking yet another significant security lapse. Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 18 Nov. 2024 Previously, scientists could access a treasure trove of data shared through Twitter’s application programming interface, enabling researchers like Pierri to routinely collect millions of tweets a day for their studies. Bykai Kupferschmidt, science.org, 31 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for application programming interface 

Word History

First Known Use

1968, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of application programming interface was in 1968

Dictionary Entries Near application programming interface

Cite this Entry

“Application programming interface.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/application%20programming%20interface. Accessed 20 Dec. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!