appeal

American  

[uh-peel] / əˈpil /

noun

• appeals
  plural

1. an earnest request for aid, support, sympathy, mercy, etc.; entreaty; petition; plea.

   Synonyms:

   invocation, supplication, prayer

2. a request or reference to some person or authority for a decision, corroboration, judgment, etc.

   Synonyms:

   solicitation, suit

3. Law.

   1. an application or proceeding for review by a higher tribunal.

   2. (in a legislative body or assembly) a formal question as to the correctness of a ruling by a presiding officer.

   3. Obsolete. a formal charge or accusation.

4. the power or ability to attract, interest, amuse, or stimulate the mind or emotions.

   The game has lost its appeal.

   Synonyms:

   attraction

5. Obsolete. a summons or challenge.

---

verb (used without object)

• appeals,
  present (3rd person singular)
• appealed,
  past participle,  past
• appealing
  present participle

1. to ask for aid, support, mercy, sympathy, or the like; make an earnest entreaty.

   The college appealed to its alumni for funds.

   Synonyms:

   ask, request

2. Law. to apply for review of a case or particular issue to a higher tribunal.

3. to have need of or ask for proof, a decision, corroboration, etc.

4. to be especially attractive, pleasing, interesting, or enjoyable.

   The red hat appeals to me.

verb (used with object)

• appeals,
  present (3rd person singular)
• appealed,
  past participle,  past
• appealing
  present participle

1. Law.

   1. to apply for review of (a case) to a higher tribunal.

   2. Obsolete. to charge with a crime before a tribunal.

idioms

1. appeal to the country, country.

appeal British  

/ əˈpiːl /

noun

1. a request for relief, aid, etc

2. the power to attract, please, stimulate, or interest

   a dress with appeal

3. an application or resort to another person or authority, esp a higher one, as for a decision or confirmation of a decision

4. law

   1. the judicial review by a superior court of the decision of a lower tribunal

   2. a request for such review

   3. the right to such review

5. cricket a verbal request to the umpire from one or more members of the fielding side to declare a batsman out

6. English law (formerly) a formal charge or accusation

   appeal of felony

---

verb

1. (intr) to make an earnest request for relief, support, etc

2. (intr) to attract, please, stimulate, or interest

3. law to apply to a superior court to review (a case or particular issue decided by a lower tribunal)

4. (intr) to resort (to), as for a decision or confirmation of a decision

5. (intr) cricket to ask the umpire to declare a batsman out

6. (intr) to challenge the umpire's or referee's decision

Synonym Usage

Appeal, entreat, petition, supplicate mean to ask for something wished for or needed. Appeal and petition may concern groups and formal or public requests. Entreat and supplicate are usually more personal and urgent. To appeal is to ask earnestly for help or support, on grounds of reason, justice, common humanity, etc.: to appeal for contributions to a cause. To petition is to ask by written request, by prayer, or the like, that something be granted: to petition for more playgrounds. Entreat suggests pleading: The captured knight entreated the king not to punish him. To supplicate is to beg humbly, usually from a superior, powerful, or stern (official) person: to supplicate that the lives of prisoners be spared.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• appealability
  noun
• appealer
  noun
• nonappealability
  noun
• reappeal
  verb
• appealable
  adjective
• nonappealable
  adjective
• unappealed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• appeals
  plural

Participles

• appealing
  present
• appealed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• appeal
  simple
• appeals
  simple
• have appealed
  perfect
• has appealed
  perfect
• am appealing
  progressive
• are appealing
  progressive
• is appealing
  progressive
• have been appealing
  perfect progressive
• has been appealing
  perfect progressive

Past

• appealed
  simple
• had appealed
  perfect
• was appealing
  progressive
• were appealing
  progressive
• had been appealing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will appeal
  simple
• will have appealed
  perfect
• will be appealing
  progressive
• will have been appealing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of appeal

First recorded in 1250–1300; (for the verb) Middle English a(p)pelen, from Anglo-French, Old French a(p)peler, from Latin appellāre “to speak to, address,” from ap- ap- ¹ + -pellāre “to push repeatedly,” stem of pellere “to drive, push, strike”; (for the noun) Middle English ap(p)el, from Anglo-French, Old French apel, noun derivative of ap(p)eler

Explanation

Appeal means "to ask, or address." If you appeal to someone's better nature, you're asking them for mercy. If a shirt doesn't appeal to you, you could also say it doesn't "speak" to you, or more simply, you don't like it. Appeal can also be used as a noun to refer to a request, as in "his parents ignored his appeal for a later curfew," or to refer to something's attractiveness or desirability, as in "we all agreed on the appeal of a tropical vacation." In judicial contexts, appeal means "to call upon a higher court to review a lower court's decision." If a lawyer appeals a court's conviction of her client, she's asking a higher court to throw the decision out. This word descends from the Latin appellare, "to address, call upon."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

appeal appeals appealed appealing

The pair spent almost four years in prison before they were acquitted on appeal in 2011.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

If that appeal fails, the case will proceed to trial at the Baker County courthouse in Macclenny, just a few miles from where D.J.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

Hours later, Mamdani’s office filed a notice saying it plans to appeal the decision.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

Artists who get labeled as AI personas by Spotify will be allowed to appeal the label.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

These “cat treats” were an abomination, but they had clearly been engineered to appeal to the weak constitutions of Earth felines.

From "Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat" by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

The court of appeals examines it next; it will reach the same conclusion as Judge Williams.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

But the appeals court noted that the existing injunction specifically allows construction of underground bunkers, bomb shelters and military and medical infrastructure to continue, along with aboveground work strictly necessary for security.

From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026

He said there have been various appeals to give phone boxes a listed status.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

A retrial in 2014 reinstated Knox and Sollecito's convictions but Italy's top appeals court finally overturned their convictions in 2015.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Courts are deeply resistant to reviewing claims once a condemned prisoner has completed the appeals process the first time.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

The administration appealed to the court after a federal judge twice blocked above-ground construction on the ballroom, while still allowing underground work to proceed.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

The commission ruled against Mr. MacCarthy on that claim but then appeared as a party to defend its ruling when he appealed to New Jersey state court.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

State authorities have appealed for financial donations from the public to support relief and rehabilitation efforts.

From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026

During their early years, the band appealed to a narrow swathe of teens and young adults.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

Nursing and caring for others appealed to her.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge

"The opposition alliance is bringing energy to their rallies and appealing to youth, women, and rural voters," Joseph Siegle, director of research at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026

He noted that 70% of Tubi users do not have cable subscriptions, making the platform appealing to advertisers who want to reach consumers not watching traditional TV.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

To help meet growing demand, it is appealing for local sewing groups to volunteer their time and skills so more unwanted clothing can be given a second life rather than ending up in landfill.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

There’s the human connection—a charismatic seller appealing to you personally, fellow buyers fawning over items you’d normally scroll past, lucky bidders snagging deals in an era when everything seems to come at a premium.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

She had not thought of newchildren as being appealing, not at all.

From "Son" by Lois Lowry

Related Words

• apply
• ask
• call
• call upon
• claim
• contest
• demand
• petition
• plead
• pray
• propose
• refer
• require
• submit
• sue
• urge