A microservice will ___ an API so other teams can call its functionality.
We expose an API when we make a service's capabilities available to callers over a network. Expose is the standard backend collocation, as in "the service exposes a REST endpoint." Show, reveal, and display imply visual presentation, not programmatic access. Documentation says "exposed endpoints," so expose an API is the precise, idiomatic phrasing for publishing functionality that other systems can invoke programmatically.
2 / 5
The mobile app will ___ the API to fetch the user's profile data.
To consume an API means to call and use the endpoints another service provides. Consume is the established term, pairing with "expose" to describe both sides of an integration, as in "API consumers." Eat, use up, and drink are literal and unprofessional. Developers write "the client consumes the API," so consume the API is the precise collocation for the act of calling and depending on a remote service.
3 / 5
To avoid breaking existing clients, teams ___ the API when they make incompatible changes.
To version an API means to label releases (like v1, v2) so clients can rely on stable contracts. Version is the exact verb behind "API versioning" strategies such as URL or header versioning. Date, number, and stamp do not capture the semantic of managing compatible releases. You see "/api/v2/" in URLs everywhere, so version the API is the precise collocation for handling change without disruption.
4 / 5
Before removing an old endpoint, the team will ___ it and warn consumers in advance.
To deprecate an API means to mark it as outdated and discouraged, scheduling its eventual removal. Deprecate is the precise software term, as in "deprecated endpoints" with sunset dates. Depreciate is a finance term about losing value, demote is unrelated, and delete skips the warning phase that deprecation provides. Docs say "this method is deprecated," so deprecate the API is the correct collocation for phasing out functionality gracefully.
5 / 5
To protect the service from abuse, we ___ requests so each client gets a fixed quota.
To rate-limit means to cap how many requests a client may make in a given period. Rate-limit is the standard term, as in "rate limiting" and HTTP 429 "Too Many Requests." Speed-limit, count-limit, and time-limit are not real API terms. APIs publish their "rate limits," so rate-limit requests is the precise collocation for controlling traffic and protecting backend resources from overload or abuse.