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Original · left

Active pharmaceutical ingredient

First in use: the 1900s
Duplicate · right

API

First in use: the 1960s

API / Active pharmaceutical ingredient / API

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Canonical todayMeasuring…
Status—
Duplicate share · 12 mo—
Last crossover—
Colour keyGrey · original meaningGreen · duplicate meaningAmber · contested (40–60%)How colours work

Drug chemistry vs. software interfaces.

Which meaning of API is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Active pharmaceutical ingredient came first (the 1900s). API arrived in the 1960s. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Active pharmaceutical ingredientAPI
English Wikipedia pageviews since July 2015 load here.

Duplicate's share of attention

Green line = duplicate's % · above 60 it owns the word · below 40 the original does

Share-of-attention line loads here.

The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · the 1900s

Active pharmaceutical ingredient

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Duplicate · the 1960s

API

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More duplicated terms

Business & startups