[ap-uhl] Pronunciation Key | 1. | the usually round, red or yellow, edible fruit of a small tree, Malus sylvestris, of the rose family. |
| 2. | the tree, cultivated in most temperate regions. |
| 3. | the fruit of any of certain other species of tree of the same genus. |
| 4. | any of these trees. |
| 5. | any of various other similar fruits, or fruitlike products or plants, as the custard apple, love apple, May apple, or oak apple. |
| 6. | anything resembling an apple in size and shape, as a ball, esp. a baseball. |
| 7. | Bowling. an ineffectively bowled ball. |
| 8. | Slang. a red capsule containing a barbiturate, esp. secobarbital. |
] Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
| ap·ple
(āp'əl) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English appel, from Old English æppel.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
apple
"A roted eppel amang þe holen, makeþ rotie þe yzounde." ["Ayenbite of Inwit," 1340]Apple of Discord (c.1400) was thrown into the wedding of Thetis and Peleus by Eris (goddess of chaos and discord), who had not been invited, and inscribed kallisti "To the Prettiest One." Paris, elected to choose which goddess should have it, gave it to Aphrodite, offending Hera and Athene, with consequences of the Trojan War, etc. Apple of one's eye (O.E.), symbol of what is most cherished, was the pupil, supposed to be a globular solid body. Apple-polisher "one who curries favor" first attested 1928 in student slang.
| apple | |
noun | |
| 1. | fruit with red or yellow or green skin and sweet to tart crisp whitish flesh |
| 2. | native Eurasian tree widely cultivated in many varieties for its firm rounded edible fruits |
apple
In addition to the idioms beginning with apple, also see polish the apple; rotten apple; upset the applecart.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
APPLE language
A revision of APL for the Illiac IV.
(1995-04-28)
Apple Valley, CA (town, FIPS 2364) Location: 34.52935 N, 117.21416 W
Population (1990): 46079 (16672 housing units)
Area: 174.1 sq km (land), 0.1 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 92307, 92308
Apple Creek, OH (village, FIPS 2232) Location: 40.74832 N, 81.83351 W
Population (1990): 860 (332 housing units)
Area: 1.5 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 44606
Apple Grove, WV Zip code(s): 25502
Apple River, IL (village, FIPS 1673) Location: 42.50194 N, 90.09467 W
Population (1990): 414 (191 housing units)
Area: 2.0 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 61001
Apple Springs, TX Zip code(s): 75926
Apple Valley, MN (city, FIPS 1900) Location: 44.74915 N, 93.19745 W
Population (1990): 34598 (11538 housing units)
Area: 44.9 sq km (land), 1.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 55124
Pine Apple, AL (town, FIPS 59880) Location: 31.87373 N, 86.98768 W
Population (1990): 365 (227 housing units)
Area: 8.1 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 36768
Apple
Ap"ple\ ([a^]p"p'l), n. [OE. appel, eppel, AS. [ae]ppel, [ae]pl; akin to Fries. & D. appel, OHG, aphul, aphol, G. apfel, Icel. epli, Sw. ["a]ple, Dan. [ae]ble, Gael. ubhall, W. afal, Arm. aval, Lith. ob[*u]lys, Russ. iabloko; of unknown origin.]1. The fleshy pome or fruit of a rosaceous tree (Pyrus malus) cultivated in numberless varieties in the temperate zones. Note: The European crab apple is supposed to be the original kind, from which all others have sprung. 2. (bot.) Any tree genus Pyrus which has the stalk sunken into the base of the fruit; an apple tree. 3. Any fruit or other vegetable production resembling, or supposed to resemble, the apple; as, apple of love, or love apple (a tomato), balsam apple, egg apple, oak apple. 4. Anything round like an apple; as, an apple of gold. Note: Apple is used either adjectively or in combination; as, apple paper or apple-paper, apple-shaped, apple blossom, apple dumpling, apple pudding. Apple blight, an aphid which injures apple trees. See Blight, n. Apple borer (Zo["o]l.), a coleopterous insect (Saperda candida or bivittata), the larva of which bores into the trunk of the apple tree and pear tree. Apple brandy, brandy made from apples. Apple butter, a sauce made of apples stewed down in cider. --Bartlett. Apple corer, an instrument for removing the cores from apples. Apple fly (Zo["o]l.), any dipterous insect, the larva of which burrows in apples. Apple flies belong to the genera Drosophila and Trypeta. Apple midge (Zo["o]l.) a small dipterous insect (Sciara mali), the larva of which bores in apples. Apple of the eye, the pupil. Apple of discord, a subject of contention and envy, so called from the mythological golden apple, inscribed "For the fairest," which was thrown into an assembly of the gods by Eris, the goddess of discord. It was contended for by Juno, Minerva, and Venus, and was adjudged to the latter. Apple of love, or Love apple, the tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum). Apple of Peru, a large coarse herb (Nicandra physaloides) bearing pale blue flowers, and a bladderlike fruit inclosing a dry berry. Apples of Sodom, a fruit described by ancient writers as externally of fair appearance but dissolving into smoke and ashes when plucked; Dead Sea apples. The name is often given to the fruit of Solanum Sodom[ae]um, a prickly shrub with fruit not unlike a small yellow tomato. Apple sauce, stewed apples. [U. S.] Apple snail or Apple shell (Zo["o]l.), a fresh-water, operculated, spiral shell of the genus Ampullaria. Apple tart, a tart containing apples. Apple tree, a tree which naturally bears apples. See Apple, 2. Apple wine, cider. Apple worm (Zo["o]l.), the larva of a small moth (Carpocapsa pomonella) which burrows in the interior of apples. See Codling moth. Dead Sea Apple. (a) pl. Apples of Sodom. Also Fig. "To seek the Dead Sea apples of politics." --S. B. Griffin. (b) A kind of gallnut coming from Arabia. See Gallnut.Apple
Ap"ple\ ([a^]p"p'l), v. i. To grow like an apple; to bear apples. --Holland.Apple
(Heb. tappuah, meaning "fragrance"). Probably the apricot or quince is intended by the word, as Palestine was too hot for the growth of apples proper. It is enumerated among the most valuable trees of Palestine (Joel 1:12), and frequently referred to in Canticles, and noted for its beauty (2:3, 5; 8:5). There is nothing to show that it was the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil." Dr. Tristram has suggested that the apricot has better claims than any other fruit-tree to be the apple of Scripture. It grows to a height of 30 feet, has a roundish mass of glossy leaves, and bears an orange coloured fruit that gives out a delicious perfume. The "apple of the eye" is the Heb. _ishon_, meaning manikin, i.e., the pupil of the eye (Prov. 7:2). (Comp. the promise, Zech. 2:8; the prayer, Ps. 17:8; and its fulfilment, Deut. 32:10.) The so-called "apple of Sodom" some have supposed to be the Solanum sanctum (Heb. hedek), rendered "brier" (q.v.) in Micah 7:4, a thorny plant bearing fruit like the potato-apple. This shrub abounds in the Jordan valley. (See ENGEDI.)
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