From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
application
n 1: the act of bringing something to bear; using it for a
particular purpose; "he advocated the application of
statistics to the problem"; "a novel application of
electronics to medical diagnosis" [syn: application,
practical application]
2: a verbal or written request for assistance or employment or
admission to a school; "December 31 is the deadline for
applications"
3: the work of applying something; "the doctor prescribed a
topical application of iodine"; "a complete bleach requires
several applications"; "the surface was ready for a coating
of paint"; [syn: application, coating, covering]
4: a program that gives a computer instructions that provide the
user with tools to accomplish a task; "he has tried several
different word processing applications" [syn: application,
application program, applications programme]
5: liquid preparation having a soothing or antiseptic or
medicinal action when applied to the skin; "a lotion for dry
skin" [syn: lotion, application]
6: a diligent effort; "it is a job requiring serious
application" [syn: application, diligence]
7: the action of putting something into operation; "the
application of maximum thrust"; "massage has far-reaching
medical applications"; "the application of indexes to tables
of data"