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
Business WeekExamples of application programming interface in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Open Banking Open banking is a banking practice that involves opening financial data through secure application programming interfaces (APIs).
—Kinil Doshi, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
In addition, Square Online has an application programming interface (API), so developers can create third-party add-ons outside the Square App Marketplace.
—Robert Anderson, PCMAG, 11 Feb. 2025
One way service providers are beginning to change that equation is by exposing telecom network functionality via application programming interfaces (APIs).
—Raghav Sahgal, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
One way to do this would be to control models behind an application programming interface, a software layer that acts as a gate between users and language models, which would allow AI service providers (and potentially others) to deter, detect, and respond to potential propagandists.
—Josh A. Goldstein, Foreign Affairs, 7 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for application programming interface
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Kinil Doshi, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
In addition, Square Online has an application programming interface (API), so developers can create third-party add-ons outside the Square App Marketplace.
—Robert Anderson, PCMAG, 11 Feb. 2025
One way service providers are beginning to change that equation is by exposing telecom network functionality via application programming interfaces (APIs).
—Raghav Sahgal, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
One way to do this would be to control models behind an application programming interface, a software layer that acts as a gate between users and language models, which would allow AI service providers (and potentially others) to deter, detect, and respond to potential propagandists.
—Josh A. Goldstein, Foreign Affairs, 7 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for 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 15 Mar. 2025.
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