ape

noun

\ ˈāp

Definition of ape

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : any of various large tailless semi-erect primates of Africa and southeastern Asia (such as the chimpanzee, gorilla, orangutan, or gibbon)

— called also anthropoid, anthropoid ape

— compare great ape

b : monkey especially : one of the larger tailless or short-tailed Old World forms —not used technically

2a : mimic

b : a large uncouth person

ape

verb

aped; aping

Definition of ape (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

: to copy closely but often clumsily and ineptly

ape

adjective

Definition of ape (Entry 3 of 3)

: crazy, wild —usually used in the phrase go ape

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Choose the Right Synonym for ape

Verb

copy, imitate, mimic, ape, mock mean to make something so that it resembles an existing thing. copy suggests duplicating an original as nearly as possible. copied the painting and sold the fake as an original imitate suggests following a model or a pattern but may allow for some variation. imitate a poet's style mimic implies a close copying (as of voice or mannerism) often for fun, ridicule, or lifelike imitation. pupils mimicking their teacher ape may suggest presumptuous, slavish, or inept imitating of a superior original. American fashion designers aped their European colleagues mock usually implies imitation with derision. mocking a vain man's pompous manner

Examples of ape in a Sentence

Noun

Her boyfriend's some big ape she met at a party.

Verb

She apes the speech and manners of the rich. was caught aping the substitute teacher's thick accent

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

That’s because, instead of staging a bombastic action cheesefest, Bumblebee self-consciously apes the style of 1980s coming-of-age stories, and to great effect. — Alissa Wilkinson, Vox, "Bumblebee is basically E.T., but with a Transformer. It’s delightful!," 18 Dec. 2018 But in a study published earlier this year, Dartmouth College anthropologist Jeremy DeSilva and his colleagues reported that the Dikika child’s foot looked like a modern human’s in some ways but more like an ape’s in other ways. — Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, "The road to bipedalism wasn’t straight and narrow," 15 Aug. 2018 Johannes Roberts directs, but Bertino’s influence is evident — Roberts apes a lot of Bertino’s moves from the first film, with characters emerging from shadows, surprise cuts and more typical horror fare. — Bill Goodykoontz, azcentral, "More kills in sequel 'The Strangers: Prey at Night'," 8 Mar. 2018 Its second, third, and fourth toes all had domed metatarsal heads that looked a lot more like those of modern humans than modern apes. — Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, "The road to bipedalism wasn’t straight and narrow," 15 Aug. 2018 Magazines and newspaper of the day often included cartoons that depictured the Irish as ape-like. — CBS News, ""Under One Roof," at NYC's Tenement Museum," 24 June 2018 Then this yeara junior minister of human resource development mocked Darwin’s theory of evolution, saying no one had ever witnessed apes turning into people. — Shekhar Chandra, Scientific American, "India Joins the Worldwide March for Science," 16 Apr. 2018 Chambers was a special-effects titan, most famous for crafting the apes in Planet of the Apes. — Aja Romano, Vox, "Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” is the eternal Halloween bop — and so much more," 31 Oct. 2018 Victoria Cairl, a senior vice president of Show-Score, a website that tracks audience and reviewer responses, also said that the oversize mechanical ape at the center of the production already is drawing plenty of positive reaction. — Charles Passy, WSJ, "‘King Kong’ Holding His Own in Broadway Debut," 15 Oct. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Ostpunk was crude and derivative, but the Ostpunks were doing more than aping Western poses. — Dominic Green, WSJ, "‘Burning Down the Haus’ Review: East German Punks," 20 Sep. 2018 Both parties signed the form and put their fingerprints on it, dipping their index fingers into bright purple ink, a gesture that aped one of the bureaucratic procedures of the Iraqi government. — Rukmini Callimachi, New York Times, "The Case of the Purloined Poultry: How ISIS Prosecuted Petty Crime," 1 July 2018 Gillespie, who went on to ape some of Stewart’s hard-edge messaging, lost by a landslide to Democrat Ralph Northam in November. — Laura Vozzella, Washington Post, "‘My opponent likes to praise and encourage white supremacists,’ Kaine tells crowd.," 17 June 2018 And Mr Ortega is aping the repression of the Somozas. — The Economist, "Daniel Ortega is causing a bloodbath in Nicaragua," 12 July 2018 Lumberjacks and the hipster bartenders who ape their style have long favored Pendleton’s flannel overshirts. — Jacob Gallagher, WSJ, "When It’s Super-Hot, This is Your Workwear Solution," 21 June 2018 Many of its propaganda tools merely aped the sorts of chauvinist and ethno-nationalist sentiment that Mr Trump and other right-wing politicians have long used to charge up their base. — The Economist, "The Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki," 5 July 2018 Facebook’s tendency to ape competing products can be a major threat to smaller companies; Snapchat’s recent troubles have been attributed in part to Facebook copying many of its features. — Bloomberg, Fortune, "Tinder's Parent Company Is Buying an Anti-Tinder Dating App," 21 June 2018 Director and co-writer Gary Ross follows familiar story beats and attempts, unsuccessfully, to ape Soderbergh’s filmmaking style. — Lindsey Bahr, kansascity, "‘Ocean’s 8’ cruises through familiar waters with its talented all-star cast," 7 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Why are characters always going in circles, whether physical (jogging astronaut) or metaphorical (repetitious ape routines)? — Peter Opaskar, Ars Technica, "2001 in 70mm: Pod bay doors look better than ever, still won’t open," 21 July 2018 In these tales, the animals are sometimes more human-like and, other times, more ape-like. — Matt Blitz, Popular Mechanics, "Science Meets Legend: The Story of Our Search for Bigfoot," 8 Oct. 2018 In the fourth toe, the metatarsal head was domed just like a modern human’s, but other aspects of the shape of the bone looked more ape-like. — Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, "The road to bipedalism wasn’t straight and narrow," 15 Aug. 2018 And the shape of the big toe stayed decidedly more ape-like until much later in our lineage, too. — Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, "The road to bipedalism wasn’t straight and narrow," 15 Aug. 2018 Orangutan If there was ever a time to compare this activity to The Truman Show, watching our seemingly self-aware ape friend at the San Diego Zoo would be it. — The Editors, Outside Online, "The Definitive Ranking of the Best Animal Livestreams," 14 June 2018 Here’s just one component — research shows that the perception of black people as subhuman and ape-like directly informs the public’s view of whether police brutality against a black suspect is deserved. — Ellen Mcgirt, Fortune, "raceAhead: Can Starbucks Change America?," 31 May 2018 The park consulted with the Center for Great Apes, a non-profit great-ape sanctuary in Central Florida, to move Mei for surgery. — Chabeli Herrera, miamiherald, "Monkey Jungle has reopened. Here is what has happened since the animal-abuse allegations.," 12 July 2018 Jungers holds open the possibility that the Shangchen toolmaker was a species of Australopithecus, a group of more ape-like hominins to which the iconic fossil Lucy belongs. — Colin Barras, Scientific American, "Tools from China are Oldest Hint of Human Lineage Outside Africa," 11 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ape.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

9 Jan 2019

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Time Traveler for ape

The first known use of ape was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for ape

ape

noun

English Language Learners Definition of ape

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a type of animal (such as a chimpanzee or gorilla) that is closely related to monkeys and humans and that is covered in hair and has no tail or a very short tail

: a large and stupid or rude person

ape

verb

English Language Learners Definition of ape (Entry 2 of 2)

: to copy or imitate (something or someone)

See the full definition for ape in the English Language Learners Dictionary

ape

noun

\ ˈāp