# apple

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈæp.əl/ · frequency rank #1,781

## Definitions
1. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
2. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
3. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
4. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
5. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
6. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
7. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
8. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
9. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
10. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
11. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
12. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
13. A common, firm, round fruit produced by a tree of the genus Malus.
14. A tree of the genus Malus; especially Malus domestica which is cultivated for its edible fruit; the apple tree.
15. Synonym of applewood (“the wood of the apple tree”).
16. A person.
17. Synonym of CBer (“a CB radio enthusiast”).
18. An assist.
19. A Native American or redskinned person who acts or thinks like a white (Caucasian) person.

## Etymology
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *h₂ébōl
Proto-Germanic *aplaz
Proto-West Germanic *applu
Old English æppel
Middle English appel
English apple
The noun is derived from Middle English appel (“Malus domestica fruit or tree, apple; any type of fruit, nut, or tuber; tree bearing fruit; (figurative) ball, sphere; (Christianity) forbidden fruit in Eden”), from Old English æppel (“apple; any type of fruit; (figurative) ball, sphere; eyeball”), from Proto-West Germanic *applu (“apple; any type of fruit”), from Proto-Germanic *aplaz (“apple; any type of fruit”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ébōl, *h₂ébl̥ (“apple”).
As regards noun sense 1.4 (“forbidden fruit”), the type of fruit eaten by Adam and Eve is not identified in the Book of Genesis in the Bible. It may have come to be identified with the apple because of the similarity between Latin mālum (“apple”) and malum (“evil; misery, torment; wrongdoing”).
The verb is derived from the noun.
Cognates
Cognate with Scots aipple (“apple”), North Frisian aapel, Oapel, ååpel (“apple”), Saterland Frisian Apel, Appel (“apple”), West Frisian apel, appel (“apple”), Alemannic German effél, epfel, epfil, öpfil (“apple”), Bavarian eipfele, epfl, Åpfe (“apple”), Cimbrian oupfal, öpfel, öpfl (“apple”), Dutch appel (“apple”), German Apfel (“apple”), German Low German Appel (“apple”), Limburgish Ape̩l, appel (“apple”), Luxembourgish Apel (“apple”), Mòcheno epfl (“apple”), Vilamovian epuł (“apple”), Yiddish עפּל (epl, “apple”), Danish æble (“apple”), Faroese epl, epli (“apple; potato”), Icelandic epli (“apple”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk eple (“apple”), Swedish äpple (“apple”), Crimean Gothic apel (“apple”), Irish úll (“apple”), Lithuanian óbuolỹs (“apple”), Russian я́блоко (jábloko, “apple”), Welsh afal (“apple”), possibly Ancient Greek ἄμπελος (ámpelos, “vine”).

## Easily confused with
- **axle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-axle)
- **appt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-appt)
- **apply** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-apply)
- **aptly** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-aptly)
- **apples** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-apples)
- **applied** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-applied)
- **Appleby** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apple-vs-appleby)
- **App** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/app-vs-apple)
- **ale** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ale-vs-apple)
- **ape** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ape-vs-apple)
- **APL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/apl-vs-apple)
- **able** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/able-vs-apple)
- **angle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/angle-vs-apple)
- **ankle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ankle-vs-apple)
- **aisle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/aisle-vs-apple)
- **ample** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ample-vs-apple)
- **Adele** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/adele-vs-apple)
- **agile** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/agile-vs-apple)
- **amply** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/amply-vs-apple)

## Common misspellings (5)
`aple`, `aplpe`, `appel`, `applle`, `paple`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/apple