Apache

noun

ə-ˈpa-chē 

in sense 3

ə-ˈpash 

plural Apache or Apaches ə-ˈpa-chēz 

-ˈpash,

-ˈpa-shəz

1

: a member of a group of Indigenous peoples of the southwestern U.S.

2

: any of the Athabascan languages of the Apache people

3

apache [French, from Apache "Apache"]

a

: a member of a gang of criminals especially in Paris

b

: ruffian

Apachean

ə-ˈpa-chē-ən 

adjective or noun

Examples of Apache in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That means people in dozens of Arizona counties — including La Paz, Apache, and parts of Pima — often have to drive hours just to find an available provider. —Sixteen Ramos, AZCentral.com, 6 Nov. 2025

The championship’s existence began 22 years ago when Electroshock and Lady Apache became the inaugural champions at Triplemania XI. —Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2025

She was found dismembered in trash bags near the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation a month later. —Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 2 Nov. 2025

As the story goes, Ben Sublett was an itinerant frontiersman who worked for a westward-expanding railroad in the early 1880s, somewhere out in Apache country. —Mike Bezemek, Outside, 29 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

American Spanish, perhaps from Zuni ʔa·paču Navajo, Apachean

First Known Use

1703, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for Apache

• catchy
• patchy
• scratchy
• malachi

Kids Definition

Apache

noun

ə-ˈpach-ē 

plural Apache or Apaches

: a member of a group of Indigenous peoples of the southwestern U.S.

also : any of the languages of the Apache people