Ap·ply v. t. [imp. & p. p. Applied p. pr. & vb. n. Applying.]
1. To lay or place; to put or adjust (one thing to another); -- with to; as, to apply the hand to the breast; to apply medicaments to a diseased part of the body.
He said, and the sword his throat applied. --Dryden.
2. To put to use; to use or employ for a particular purpose, or in a particular case; to appropriate; to devote; as, to apply money to the payment of a debt.
3. To make use of, declare, or pronounce, as suitable, fitting, or relative; as, to apply the testimony to the case; to apply an epithet to a person.
Yet God at last
To Satan, first in sin, his doom applied. --Milton.
4. To fix closely; to engage and employ diligently, or with attention; to attach; to incline.
Apply thine heart unto instruction. --Prov. xxiii. 12.
5. To direct or address. [R.]
Sacred vows . . . applied to grisly Pluto. --Pope.
6. To betake; to address; to refer; -- used reflexively.
I applied myself to him for help. --Johnson.
7. To busy; to keep at work; to ply. [Obs.]
She was skillful in applying his =\“humors.”\= --Sir P. Sidney.
8. To visit. [Obs.]
And he applied each place so fast. --Chapman.
Applied chemistry. See under Chemistry.
Applied mathematics. See under Mathematics.