plastic

¹

[ plas-tik ]

noun

1. Often any of a group of synthetic or natural organic materials that may be shaped when soft and then hardened, including many types of resins, resinoids, polymers, cellulose derivatives, casein materials, and proteins: used in place of other materials, as glass, wood, and metals, in construction and decoration, for making many articles, as coatings, and, drawn into filaments, for weaving. They are often known by trademark names, as Bakelite, Vinylite, or Lucite.
2. a credit card, or credit cards collectively, usually made of plastic:

   He had a whole pocketful of plastic.

3. money, payment, or credit represented by the use of a credit card or cards.
4. something, or a group of things, made of or resembling plastic:

   The entire meal was served on plastic.

adjective

1. made of plastic.
2. capable of being molded or of receiving form:

   clay and other plastic substances.

3. produced by molding:

   plastic figures.

4. having the power of molding or shaping formless or yielding material:

   the plastic forces of nature.

5. being able to create, especially within an art form; having the power to give form or formal expression:

   the plastic imagination of great poets and composers.

6. Fine Arts.
   1. concerned with or pertaining to molding or modeling; sculptural.
   2. relating to three-dimensional form or space, especially on a two-dimensional surface.
   3. pertaining to the tools or techniques of drawing, painting, or sculpture:

      the plastic means.

   4. characterized by an emphasis on formal structure:

      plastic requirements of a picture.

7. pliable; impressionable:

   the plastic mind of youth.

   Synonyms: amenable, flexible, pliant

8. giving the impression of being made of or furnished with plastic:

   We stayed at one of those plastic motels.

9. artificial or insincere; synthetic; phony:

   jeans made of cotton, not some plastic substitute; a plastic smile.

10. lacking in depth, individuality, or permanence; superficial, dehumanized, or mass-produced:

    a plastic society interested only in material acquisition.

11. of or relating to the use of credit cards:

    plastic credit; plastic money.

12. Biology, Pathology. formative.
13. Surgery. concerned with or pertaining to the remedying or restoring of malformed, injured, or lost parts:

    a plastic operation.

-plastic

²

1. a combining form occurring in chloroplastic; protoplastic.

-plastic

¹

combining form

1. growing or forming

   neoplastic

plastic

²

/ ˈplɑːs-; ˈplæstɪk /

noun

1. any one of a large number of synthetic usually organic materials that have a polymeric structure and can be moulded when soft and then set, esp such a material in a finished state containing plasticizer, stabilizer, filler, pigments, etc. Plastics are classified as thermosetting (such as Bakelite) or thermoplastic (such as PVC) and are used in the manufacture of many articles and in coatings, artificial fibres, etc Compare resin
2. short for plastic money

adjective

1. made of plastic
2. easily influenced; impressionable

   the plastic minds of children

3. capable of being moulded or formed
4. fine arts
   1. of or relating to moulding or modelling

      the plastic arts

   2. produced or apparently produced by moulding

      the plastic draperies of Giotto's figures

5. having the power to form or influence

   the plastic forces of the imagination

6. biology of or relating to any formative process; able to change, develop, or grow

   plastic tissues

7. of or relating to plastic surgery
8. slang.
   superficially attractive yet unoriginal or artificial

   plastic food

plastic

/ plăs′tĭk /

Noun

1. Any of numerous substances that can be shaped and molded when subjected to heat or pressure. Plastics are easily shaped because they consist of long-chain molecules known as polymers, which do not break apart when flexed. Plastics are usually artificial resins but can also be natural substances, as in certain cellular derivatives and shellac. Plastics can be pressed into thin layers, formed into objects, or drawn into fibers for use in textiles. Most do not conduct electricity well, are low in density, and are often very tough. Polyvinyl chloride, methyl methacrylate, and polystyrene are plastics.
2. See more at thermoplastic

Adjective

1. Capable of being molded or formed into a shape.

Derived Forms

• ˈplastically, adverb

Other Words From

• plasti·cal·ly plastic·ly adverb
• non·plastic adjective noun
• un·plastic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of plastic¹

1625–35; 1900–10 plastic fordef 1; < Latin plasticus that may be molded < Greek plastikós. See -plast, -ic

Origin of plastic²

plastic

Word History and Origins

Origin of plastic¹

from Greek plastikos; see plastic

Origin of plastic²

C17: from Latin plasticus relating to moulding, from Greek plastikos, from plassein to form

Example Sentences

Packing his scant belongings into plastic bags, he waded in.

From BBC

Several hundred million tons of plastics are produced each year globally, and an estimated 79% of this material ends up in landfills or "becomes fugitive in the environment," the researchers wrote in their report.

From Science Daily

Significantly, the behaviors spurred by the plastic bag rules continued after the rules were no longer in place.

From Science Daily

Cooking with any plastic utensil has long been seen as worrisome because heat can cause chemicals in the plastic to migrate into the food you’re about to eat.

From Los Angeles Times

Months of weekends were spent digging the 40ft tunnel, with debris being taken away in plastic boxes under cover of darkness.

From BBC

Related Words

• elastic
• molded