What does appeal mean?
Appeal is a versatile English word functioning as both noun and verb, centred on the idea of making a serious request. As a noun, it denotes an earnest call for help, money, sympathy, or support — as when a charity launches an appeal after a disaster — or, in law, a formal application to a higher court to re-examine a decision. As a verb, it means to make such a request or to pursue such a legal challenge. A further, quite different sense describes attractiveness: something with 'broad appeal' draws wide interest. The word derives from Latin 'appelare', meaning to address or call upon, entering English via Old French in the medieval period, where its legal use was already established. Neutral in tone but capable of urgency, 'appeal' appears constantly in journalism, law, fundraising, and everyday persuasion, making it essential vocabulary for anyone describing requests, influence, or attraction.
A serious or urgent request, especially one made to the public for money, help, or sympathy; also, a formal application to a higher court to review a lower court's decision; also, attractiveness or the quality of drawing interest.
"The Red Cross launched an emergency appeal for donations."
In legal contexts, 'appeal' has a specific procedural meaning distinct from its general sense of an earnest request.
To make a serious or urgent request for something; to formally ask a higher court to review a decision; also, to be attractive or interesting to someone ('the idea appeals to me').
"The defence lawyers intend to appeal the verdict."
Standard plural, used for multiple requests or multiple legal applications.
"The court dismissed several appeals filed last year."
The word 'appeal' once meant simply a 'call' — from Latin 'appelare', to address — and it still carries that sense of reaching out across a distance to be heard.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of appeal
Appeal comes from the Latin verb 'appelare', meaning 'to address' or 'to call upon', which passed into Old French as 'apeler' before entering Middle English around the fourteenth century. Its earliest English uses were largely legal, reflecting the Roman-law notion of calling a case before a higher authority, and this judicial sense remains central today. The broader sense of an earnest request for help or sympathy developed alongside it. Cognates include 'peal' and 'repeal', both from the same Latin root.
Related word forms
How appeal is actually used
'Appeal' is neutral in register, used in both everyday and formal contexts. In legal settings it carries a precise technical meaning (a request to a higher authority to reconsider a decision). The sense of 'attractiveness' ('sex appeal', 'mass appeal') is common in marketing and media contexts.
Easily confused with appeal
A 'peal' refers to a loud ringing of bells, whereas an 'appeal' is a request or call for support — the two words share a root but differ entirely in meaning.