applicant

American  

[ap-li-kuhnt] / ˈæp lɪ kənt /

noun

1. a person who applies for or requests something; a candidate.

   an applicant for a position.

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applicant British  

/ ˈæplɪkənt /

noun

1. a person who applies, as for a job, grant, support, etc; candidate

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Etymology

Origin of applicant

First recorded in 1475–85, applicant is from the Latin word applicant- (stem of applicāns applying, present participle of applicāre ). See apply, -ant

Explanation

An applicant is someone who signs up or applies for something. A job applicant for example, often fills out a form and then interviews for the position she hopes to get. When you submit your college application to a school you'd like to attend, you are an applicant to that school. Other kinds of applicants are job candidates and scholarship hopefuls. To apply is to put in for or request entry to something, and the root of both apply and applicant is the Old French aploiier, "apply, use, or attach," from the Latin applicare, "attach to, join, or connect."

Example Sentences

ACE awarded £12.23m in funding where an applicant name, project title or category contained the word "comedy" between 2010/11 to 2024/25, according to the government.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

On its rebuilding dashboard, the county reports that cases spend an average of 32 days in county review compared with 122 days waiting for applicant response.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

The request from Dhillon to the schools asks for 46 categories of applicant information for incoming classes starting in 2019.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

Those pictures require patience, time, and pain to conjure on the part of the applicant.

From Slate • Mar. 20, 2026

The delay is long enough that the applicant is forced to look up and meet her eyes.

From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon

Related Words

• aspirant
• candidate
• claimant
• seeker