REST API
Also called: REST, RESTful API
A web API where things are resources at URLs, and HTTP methods like GET and POST say what to do with them.
Definition
REST (Representational State Transfer) is a style for designing web APIs. Each resource, like a book or an order, has a URL; clients use HTTP methods to read (GET), create (POST), replace (PUT), change (PATCH) or remove (DELETE) it, and the server answers with a status code and usually JSON. It's the most common way mobile apps talk to their backends.
In practice
GET /api/books/42 returns book 42 as JSON with status 200, or 404 if it doesn't exist.
Learn it in context
Lessons that use this term.