applied 1 of 2

adjective

ə-ˈplīd How to pronounce applied (audio)
Definition of appliednext
as in applicable
capable of being put to use or account used some applied psychology to get the teenager to become more responsible

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applied

2 of 2

verb

past tense of apply
1
as in related
to have a relation or connection does your rule about calling home apply to me as well?

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2
as in devoted
to occupy (oneself) diligently or with close attention Sam applied himself to writing thank-you letters to everyone who'd helped sponsor him for the charity walk

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3
as in spread
to put a layer of on a surface apply the ointment liberally

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4
as in used
to put into action or service apply the laws of motion to this physics problem

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5
as in exerted
to bring to bear especially forcefully or effectively apply pressure to the area to stop the bleeding

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6
as in enforced
to carry out effectively a police officer applying the law

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of applied
Adjective
When he was diagnosed with autism at the age of 2, his parents turned to applied behavior analysis, or ABA, a therapy commonly used to help children learn daily life skills and limit harmful behaviors. — Jason Kane, NBC news, 25 June 2026 The project is part of Habitat for Humanity's broader effort to expand affordable homeownership opportunities across the metro area while giving students hands-on experience in construction and applied math. — Justin Adams, CBS News, 1 July 2026
Verb
The school districts applied to receive funds allocated from the county to the Will County Regional Office of Education as part of the fiscal year 2026 budget. — Michelle Mullins, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026 Future work will extend this approach to increasingly complex layered materials, helping determine how broadly these molecular design rules can be applied across the rapidly growing family of organic-inorganic hybrid semiconductors. — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 5 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for applied
Recent Examples of Synonyms for applied
  1. applicable
  2. related
  3. devoted
  4. spread
  5. used
  6. exerted
  7. enforced
  8. useful
Adjective
  • Substitutions Here’s how to substitute heavy cream for half-and-half (and vice versa) when applicable.
    — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 3 July 2026
  • These assets largely avoid current tax liability because capital gains are only triggered upon sale, a principle applicable to all crypto investors.
    — Shehan Chandrasekera, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Definition of applicable
Verb
  • What’s In The Release Apple’s release notes specify that the content is all security-related.
    — David Phelan, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • Fable 5 included guardrails that prevented the AI system from assisting with a wide range of cybersecurity- and biology-related tasks.
    — Jared Perlo, NBC news, 1 July 2026
Definition of related
Verb
  • If the Declaration announced a legal theory of legitimate government, Wilson devoted much of the remainder of his career to explaining what that theory meant.
    — Joseph Andrew, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026
  • Other club sources, however, said Mendoza devoted a lot of energy to making sure Lindor and Soto were on the same page.
    — Will Sammon, New York Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of devoted
Verb
  • Flames raced through rows of vehicles at a Rancho Cordova salvage yard Friday evening, engulfing between 50 and 100 vehicles before more than 70 firefighters contained the blaze and kept it from spreading to neighboring businesses.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 4 July 2026
  • If using grounds, apply in 1 to 2-inch deep layers and make sure the coffee is spread in an unbroken line so slugs and snails won’t cross it.
    — Lauren Landers, The Spruce, 3 July 2026
Definition of spread
Verb
  • The Hyundai Motor Company used one of the world’s largest sporting stages to showcase its robotics ambitions.
    — Clemente Lisi, Forbes.com, 6 July 2026
  • For instance, in Berkeley, neighbors used CEQA — citing potential noise impact from partying students — to delay, for years, UC Berkeley’s construction of student dorms on People’s Park.
    — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026
Definition of used
Verb
  • Beijing has exerted greater institutional control in Tibet since Xi Jinping became the country's president in 2012.
    — Kanishka Singh, USA Today, 3 July 2026
  • Beijing has exerted greater institutional control in Tibet since Xi Jinping became the country’s president in 2012.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 3 July 2026
Definition of exerted
Verb
  • The purpose of the program, created by Congress and enforced by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission or FERC, was to induce electric utilities to join regional transmission organizations like ISO New England.
    — Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 5 July 2026
  • Parties to a contract have to be confident it will be enforced by a court of law, with no recourse to bribery or political influence.
    — Tom Campbell, Oc Register, 4 July 2026
Definition of enforced
Adjective
  • Later in the day, your mind finds a clever solution, a useful contact or a whole new point of view.
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 1 July 2026
  • While Mickey Moniak and Freddy Peralta and Kris Bubic are useful pieces to move, these squads don’t really have the rosters to shake up the deadline by embracing a more aggressive sale.
    — Tim Britton, New York Times, 1 July 2026
Definition of useful

Browse Nearby Words

applicative
applied
applied (for)
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Cite this Entry

“Applied.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/applied. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of applied for Spanish Speakers

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