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
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Competitive Analysis: Application & API Delivery Hand in hand with application delivery and security comes (from any vendor worth its salt) an equally exhaustive approach to application programming interface management and security alongside AI gateway functionality. Adrian Bridgwater, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025 According to its status page, OpenAI is showing elevated error rates for its application programming interfaces (APIs) as well as ChatGPT and Sora on the morning of Tuesday, June 10. Chad Murphy, Cincinnati Enquirer, 10 June 2025 According to its status page, OpenAI is showing elevated error rates for its application programming interfaces (APIs) as well as ChatGPT and Sora, early on June 10. Alexis Simmerman, Austin American Statesman, 10 June 2025 In 2006, the company introduced CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) as a proprietary parallel computing platform and application programming interface. Steven Wolfe Pereira, Forbes.com, 9 July 2025 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

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Cite this Entry

“Application programming interface.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/application%20programming%20interface. Accessed 1 Aug. 2025.

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