plait

[ pleyt, plat ]

noun

1. a braid, especially of hair or straw.
2. a pleat or fold, as of cloth.

verb (used with object)

1. to braid, as hair or straw.
2. to make, as a mat, by braiding.
3. to pleat.

plait

/ plæt /

noun

1. a length of hair, ribbon, etc, that has been plaited
2. (in Britain) a loaf of bread of several twisting or intertwining parts
3. a rare spelling of pleat

verb

1. tr to intertwine (strands or strips) in a pattern

Other Words From

• inter·plait verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of plait¹

1350–1400; Middle English pleyt < Middle French pleit < Latin plicitum, neuter of plicitus, past participle of plicāre to fold; ply ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of plait¹

C15 pleyt, from Old French pleit, from Latin plicāre to fold; see ply ²

Example Sentences

For the unaware, that classic acronym comes from the French phrase Répondez s'il vous plait.

From Salon

"If someone thinks that is racism, then 'S'il vous plaît', they can call us racist, but this is not how I understand racism," he said.

From Reuters

"When we saw the photo and she's sitting there with her plait and her doll she would say, 'I wonder who the other two girls are?',"

From BBC

Mila always had hers braided perfectly around the crown of her head, and today she was carefully sliding tiny flowers into the plait as she followed Verusha.

From Literature

She had brilliant gold hair braided into a circle at her crown, with wisps catching on the cowl and poking wildly out of the plait.

From Literature