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.

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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

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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

His star shone brightly enough for the group to brand its collections "Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello", while celebrity fans from Kate Moss, Dua Lipa, Zoe Saldana and Hailey Bieber gave him cross-generation appeal.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

Tom Hayes, who was initially sentenced to 14 years, reduced on appeal to 11, is now seeking damages from his former employer UBS.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

The governing body is still yet to confirm if it will appeal the independent commission's ruling.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Fast Retailing CEO Tadashi Yanai said Uniqlo’s growing recognition in the U.S. and Europe has attracted customers drawn to its global brand appeal, especially in markets like Southeast Asia, India and Australia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

Not because people here aren't slobs—I’m sure a lot of them are—but they’re so obsessively worried about their property values that they’d rather die than allow the detritus of civilization to sully their curb appeal.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Supreme Court has repeatedly turned down appeals contending such executions amount to “cruel and unusual punishment,” which is barred under U.S. law.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

Former international cricket captains have made several appeals to Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urging Khan be accorded proper medical care.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

The Supreme Court is due to continue hearing appeals from those parties on Friday.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

City Planning Department processes, such as reviews and appeals.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

But you could safely regard the commander of War Rocket Ajax as having no need to resort to ethos appeals.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Duffy, in turn, appealed to Diamantis when he feared Tolland’s general contractor was switching from masonry to drywall.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

When patients and their doctors appealed those denials, insurance companies reversed roughly 80% of their initial decisions.

From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2026

In the past, Anwar appealed to Malaysians for solidarity towards migrants who fled upheaval in Myanmar credited to Min Aung Hlaing.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

Utilities have traditionally appealed to investors because of their dividend payouts, but those payments can look less attractive compared to bonds when interest rates rise, said Sosnick.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

It was the kind of foolish, farmerish enterprise that appealed to him.

From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck

He may not have had the bona fides of someone like Leonardo DiCaprio, but Hartnett’s work was consistent and appealing.

From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026

Because cortisol is something that can be fairly easily and quantifiably measured, and research shows that high cortisol can be a feature of a slew of problems, it’s an appealing candidate.

From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026

The math gets more appealing at 5.3%, as the same sum generates $106,000.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

Mr. Sun’s production technique here amplifies that sense of irregularity in an appealing way.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

Dave Barry’s “Ask Mr. Language Person” satirized their typical advisory: writing tip for professionals: To make your writing more appealing to the reader, avoid “writing negatively.”

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

Related Words

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