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Purpose vs Application - What's the difference?

purpose | application |

As nouns the difference between purpose and application

is that purpose is an object to be reached; a target; an aim; a goal while application is the act of applying or laying on, in a literal sense; as, the application of emollients to a diseased limb.

As a verb purpose

is have set as one's purpose; resolve to accomplish; intend; plan.

purpose

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) .

Noun

(en noun)
  • An object to be reached; a target; an aim; a goal.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author= Ed Pilkington
    • , volume=188, issue=26, page=6, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= ‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told , passage=In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way.}}
  • A result that is desired; an intention.
  • The act of intending to do something; resolution; determination.
  • * 2013 , Phil McNulty, "[http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23830980]", BBC Sport , 1 September 2013:
    • United began with more purpose in the early phase of the second half and Liverpool were grateful for Glen Johnson's crucial block from Young's goalbound shot.
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Sarah Glaz
    • , title= Ode to Prime Numbers , volume=101, issue=4, magazine=(American Scientist) , passage=Some poems, echoing the purpose of early poetic treatises on scientific principles, attempt to elucidate the mathematical concepts that underlie prime numbers. Others play with primes’ cultural associations. Still others derive their structure from mathematical patterns involving primes.}}
  • The subject of discourse; the point at issue.
    • (Spenser)
  • The reason for which something is done, or the reason it is done in a particular way.
    • The purpose of turning off the lights overnight is to save energy.
  • (obsolete) Instance; example.
    • (rfquotek, L'Estrange)
    Synonyms
    * (target ): aim, goal, object, target * (intention ): aim, plan, intention * (determination ): determination, intention, resolution * (subject of discourse ): matter, subject, topic * (reason for doing something ): reason * See also
    Derived terms
    (terms derived from purpose) * all-purpose * common purpose * cross-purpose * fit for purpose * for all intents and purposes * game with a purpose * general-purpose * infinitive of purpose * multi-purpose * metapurpose * purpose-built * purposeful * purposeless * purpose-like * purpose loan * purposely * purpose statement * on purpose

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl)

    Verb

    (purpos)
  • Have set as one's purpose; resolve to accomplish; intend; plan.
  • * Macaulay
    • I purpose to write the history of England from the accession of King James the Second down to a time which is within the memory of men still living.
  • (passive ) Designed for some purpose.
  • (obsolete) To have a purpose or intention; to discourse.
    • (Spenser)
    Derived terms
    * purposed * purposer * purposive * on purpose
    Synonyms
    * (have set as one's purpose ): aim, intend, mean, plan, set out * (designed for some purpose ): intended

    References

    * * *

    Statistics

    *

    application

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The act of applying or laying on, in a literal sense; as, the application of emollients to a diseased limb.
  • The thing applied.
  • * Johnson
    • He invented a new application by which blood might be stanched.
  • * 1857 , John Eadie, ?John Francis Waller, ?William John Macquorn Rankine, The Imperial Dictionary of Universal Biography
    • His body was stripped, laid out upon a table, and covered with a hearsecloth, when some of his attendants perceived symptoms of returning animation, and by the use of warm applications , internal and external, gradually restored him to life.
  • The act of applying as a means; the employment of means to accomplish an end; specific use.
  • * (John Locke)
    • If a right course be taken with children, there will not be much need of the application of the common rewards and punishments.
  • The act of directing or referring something to a particular case, to discover or illustrate agreement or disagreement, fitness, or correspondence.
    • I make the remark, and leave you to make the '''application .
    The application of a theory to a set of data can be challenging.
  • (computing) A computer program or the set of software that the end user perceives as a single entity as a tool for a well-defined purpose. (Also called: application program; application software.)
    • This iPhone application can connect to most social networks.
  • A verbal or written request for assistance or employment or admission to a school.
    • December 31 is the deadline for MBA applications .
  • (bureaucracy, legal) A petition, entreaty, or other request.
    • Their application for a deferral of the hearing was granted.

    Hyponyms

    * See also

    Synonyms

    * (computer software) software, program

    References

    * WordNet 3.0 [http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=application]. ----