plate

¹

[ pleyt ]

noun

1. a shallow, usually circular dish, often of earthenware or porcelain, from which food is eaten.
2. the contents of such a dish.
3. an entire course of a meal served on such a dish:

   I had the vegetable plate for lunch.

4. the food and service for one person, as at a banquet, fund-raising dinner, or the like:

   The wedding breakfast cost $20 a plate.

5. household dishes, utensils, etc., of metal plated with gold or silver.
6. household dishes, utensils, etc., made of gold or silver.
7. Also called col·lec·tion plate [k, uh, -, lek, -sh, uh, n pleyt],. a dish, as of metal or wood, used for collecting offerings, as in a church:

   I don't make enough money to tithe, but I always bring a few dollars for when they pass the plate during service.

8. a thin, flat sheet or piece of metal or other material, especially of uniform thickness.
9. metal in such sheets.
10. a flat, polished piece of metal on which something may be or is engraved.
11. Usually plates. license plate:

    a car with New Jersey plates.

12. a flat or curved sheet of metal, plastic, glass, or similar hard material, on which a picture or text has been engraved, etched, molded, photographically developed, or drawn, that is inked, as in a press, for printing impressions on other surfaces.
13. a printed impression from such a piece or from some similar piece, as a woodcut.
14. a full-page illustration in a book, especially an insert on paper different from the text pages.
15. a piece of armor made from a thin, flat piece or several such pieces of tough material, especially wrought iron or steel.
16. armor composed of thin, flat pieces; plate armor.
17. Dentistry.
    1. the part of a denture that conforms to the mouth and contains the teeth.
    2. the entire denture.
18. Baseball.
    1. the plate. home plate.
    2. rubber ¹( def 14 ).
19. plate glass.
20. Photography. a sheet of glass, metal, etc., coated with a sensitized emulsion, used for taking a photograph.
21. Anatomy, Zoology. a platelike part, structure, or organ.
22. a thin piece or cut of beef from the lower end of the ribs.
23. Geology. crustal plate:

    the Pacific Plate;

    the Cocos and Rivera Plates.

24. Electronics. one of the interior elements of a vacuum tube, toward which electrons are attracted by virtue of its positive charge; anode. : P
25. Carpentry. any of various horizontal timbers or boards laid flat across the heads of studding, upon floors, etc., to support joists, rafters, or studs at or near their ends.
26. a gold or silver cup or the like awarded as the prize in a horse race or some other contest.
27. a horse race or some other contest for such a prize.
28. Heraldry. a rounded argent.

verb (used with object)

, plat·ed, plat·ing.

1. to coat (metal) with a thin film of gold, silver, nickel, etc., by mechanical or chemical means.
2. to cover or overlay with metal plates for protection.
3. to place (food) on or in a dish before serving (often followed by up ):

   Plate the scallops, then deglaze the pan to make your sauce.

4. Metalworking.
   1. to forge (a bloom or the like) into a broad piece.
   2. to hammer (cutlery) gently to produce an even surface.
5. Printing. to make a stereotype or electrotype plate from (type).
6. Papermaking. to give a high gloss to (paper), as on supercalendered paper.

plate

²

[ pleyt ]

noun

, Obsolete.

1. a coin, especially of silver.

plate

¹

/ pleɪt /

noun

1. 1. a shallow usually circular dish made of porcelain, earthenware, glass, etc, on which food is served or from which food is eaten
   2. ( as modifier )

      a plate rack

2. 1. Also calledplateful the contents of a plate or the amount a plate will hold
   2. a plate of cakes, sandwiches, etc, brought by a guest to a party

      everyone was asked to bring a plate

3. an entire course of a meal

   a cold plate

4. any shallow or flat receptacle, esp for receiving a collection in church
5. flat metal of uniform thickness obtained by rolling, usually having a thickness greater than about three millimetres
6. a thin coating of metal usually on another metal, as produced by electrodeposition, chemical action, etc
7. metal or metalware that has been coated in this way, esp with gold or silver

   Sheffield plate

8. dishes, cutlery, etc, made of gold or silver
9. a sheet of metal, plastic, rubber, etc, having a printing surface produced by a process such as stereotyping, moulding, or photographic deposition
10. a print taken from such a sheet or from a woodcut, esp when appearing in a book
11. a thin flat sheet of a substance, such as metal or glass
12. armour made of overlapping or articulated pieces of thin metal
13. photog
    1. a sheet of glass, or sometimes metal, coated with photographic emulsion on which an image can be formed by exposure to light
    2. ( as modifier )

       a plate camera

14. an orthodontic device, esp one used for straightening children's teeth
15. an informal word for denture
16. anatomy any flat platelike structure or part
17. 1. a cup or trophy awarded to the winner of a sporting contest, esp a horse race
    2. a race or contest for such a prize
18. any of the rigid layers of the earth's lithosphere of which there are believed to be at least 15 See also plate tectonics
19. electronics
    1. the anode in an electronic valve
    2. an electrode in an accumulator or capacitor
20. a horizontal timber joist that supports rafters or studs
21. a light horseshoe for flat racing
22. a thin cut of beef from the brisket
23. See plate rail
24. Also calledCommunion plate RC Church a flat plate held under the chin of a communicant in order to catch any fragments of the consecrated Host
25. archaic.
    a coin, esp one made of silver
26. on a plate
    in such a way as to be acquired without further trouble

    he was handed the job on a plate

27. on one's plate
    waiting to be done or dealt with

    he has a lot on his plate at the moment

verb

1. to coat (a surface, usually metal) with a thin layer of other metal by electrolysis, chemical reaction, etc
2. to cover with metal plates, as for protection
3. printing to make a stereotype or electrotype from (type or another plate)
4. to form (metal) into plate, esp by rolling
5. to give a glossy finish to (paper) by calendering
6. to grow (microorganisms) in a culture medium

Plate

²

/ pleɪt /

noun

1. River Plate
   the English name for the (Río de la) Plata

plate

/ plāt /

Noun

1. A thin, flat sheet of metal or other material, especially one used as an electrode in a storage battery or capacitor, or as the anode of an electron tube.
2. In plate tectonics, one of the sections of the Earth's lithosphere (crust and upper mantle) that is in constant motion along with other sections. It is the interaction of the plates that causes mountains, volcanos, and other land features to form and that causes earthquakes to occur. Six major plates and numerous smaller ones are recognized.
3. See more at tectonic boundary

Verb

1. To coat or cover with a thin layer of metal.

Other Words From

• plate·less adjective
• plate·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of plate¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English plat(e), plait(e), from Old French: literally, “something flat,” noun use of feminine of adjective plat, from unattested Vulgar Latin plattus, from Greek platýs “broad, flat”; flat ¹

Origin of plate²

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English, from Old French; special use of plate plate ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of plate¹

C13: from Old French: thin metal sheet, something flat, from Vulgar Latin plattus (unattested); related to Greek platus flat

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. have on one's plate, Informal. to have as an immediate task, obligation, or prospect:

   I had too much on my plate already to take on another task.

More idioms and phrases containing plate

see hand to on a silver platter (serve up on a plate) ; have a lot on one's plate .

Example Sentences

Her works are filled with whimsy and joy, including a collection of platters and plates featuring inlaid porcelain flowers, vaguely defined creatures that hold birthday candles, penguin pitchers and buddhas.

From Los Angeles Times

His own comment in a newspaper, that the "tectonic plates" in the Labour Party were moving, gave rise to suggestions of manoeuvring within the cabinet.

From BBC

Tapping these discs and plates generates useful voltage that if amplified could be used to charge electronic devices using everyday forces.

From Science Daily

Left, sliced log slabs make decorative plates and platters.

From Los Angeles Times

And all three of my children’s educational institutions have reusable plates and cutlery for every meal provided, without any single-use utensils.

From Salon

Related Words

• layer
• slab
• slice