plate
Other forms: plates; plated; plating
A plate is a flat dish meant for serving one person's portion of food. It would make perfect sense to eat spaghetti from a plate, but you probably shouldn't use a plate for your soup.
While plates can be any shape and made of various materials (including plastic, metal, or paper), they're usually round and ceramic. You can also use this handy noun to mean "the amount of food that fits on a plate;" a sheet of glass or metal; a license plate; or a rigid section of the earth's surface. As a verb, plate means "to coat in metal" or "to arrange food attractively on a plate."
Definitions of plate
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dish on which food is served or from which food is eatentypes:dessert platea small plate on which dessert can be serveddinner platea plate from which a diner eats during the main course of a mealpaper platea disposable plate made of cardboardsoup platea deep plate with a wide rimsteel platea plate of steeltype of:flatwaretableware that is relatively flat and fashioned as a single piece
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the quantity contained in a platesynonyms: platefultype of:containerfulthe quantity that a container will hold
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a main course served on a plate
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a sheet of metal or wood or glass or plastictypes:cylinder heada detachable plate that covers the closed end of a cylinder chamber in a reciprocating engine or pumpdampera movable iron plate that regulates the draft in a stove or chimney or furnaceengravinga block or plate or other hard surface that has been engravedescutcheon(nautical) a plate on a ship's stern on which the name is inscribedfin keela metal plate projecting from the keel of a shallow vessel to give it greater lateral stabilityfishplatemetal plate bolted along sides of two rails or beamsgrid, storage-battery grida perforated or corrugated metal plate used in a storage battery as a conductor and support for the active materiallamellathin platelicense plate, numberplatea plate mounted on the front and back of car and bearing the car's registration numberL-platea square plate bearing the letter L that is attached to both ends of a car to indicate that the driver is a learnernameplatea plate bearing a nameplate irona plate of ironplatenthe flat plate of a printing press that presses the paper against the typeplessimeter, pleximetera small thin metal plate held against the body and struck with a plexor in percussive examinationstapa small metal plate that attaches to the toe or heel of a shoe (as in tap dancing)boilerplatethick plate iron used in the production of boilersbrake diska disk or plate that is fixed to the wheel; pressure is applied to it by the brake padscenterboard, centreboard, drop keel, sliding keela retractable fin keel used on sailboats to prevent drifting to leewardcopperplate, copperplate engravingan engraving consisting of a smooth plate of copper that has been etched or engraveddeadeye(nautical) a round hardwood disk with holes and a grooved perimeter used to tighten a shrouddiaphragmelectro-acoustic transducer that vibrates to receive or produce sound wavesdoorplatea nameplate fastened to a door; indicates the person who works or lives thereetchingan etched plate made with the use of acidFrisbeea light, plastic disk about 10 inches in diameter; propelled with a flip of the wrist for recreation or competitiongravurea printing plate used in the process of gravureline block, line engraving, linecutengraving consisting of a block that has been etched or engravedhockey puck, pucka vulcanized rubber disk 3 inches in diameter that is used instead of a ball in ice hockeysheet ironplate iron thinner than tank ironsteel engravingengraving on a steel platestovepipe ironplate iron that is thinner than tank irontank ironplate iron that is thinner than boilerplate but thicker than sheet iron or stovepipe irontokena metal or plastic disk that can be redeemed or used in designated slot machineswood block, wood engraving, woodcutengraving consisting of a block of wood with a design cut into it; used to make printstype of:
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a shallow receptacle for collection in churchsynonyms: collection platetype of:receptaclea container that is used to put or keep things in
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a flat sheet of metal or glass on which a photographic image can be recordedsynonyms: photographic platetypes:quarter platea photographic plate measuring 3.25 inches by 4.25 inchestype of:
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a full-page illustration (usually on slick paper)types:fashion platea plate illustrating the latest fashion in dresstype of:illustrationa visual representation (a picture or diagram) that is used make some subject more pleasing or easier to understand
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a metal sheathing of uniform thickness (such as the shield attached to an artillery piece to protect the gunners)types:armor plate, armor plating, armour plate, plate armor, plate armourspecially hardened steel plate used to protect fortifications or vehicles from enemy fireshell platingthe plates covering the frame of a steel ship and corresponding to the planking of a wooden shipbackplateplate armor protecting the back; worn as part of a cuirassbeavera movable piece of armor on a medieval helmet used to protect the lower facebrassardarmor plate that protects the armcannon(Middle Ages) a cylindrical piece of armor plate to protect the armchamfron, chanfron, front-stall, frontstall, testieremedieval plate armor to protect a horse's headcubitierebody armor that protects the elbowcuissearmor plate that protects the thighepaulierearmor plate that protects the shoulderfaulda piece of armor plate below the breastplategorgetarmor plate that protects the neckhelmetarmor plate that protects the headknee piecearmor plate that protects the kneenosepiecearmor plate that protects the noseroundelround piece of armor plate that protects the armpitskirt of tassesarmor plate that protects the body below the waisttuillearmor plate that protects the hip and thightype of:shielda protective covering or structure
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coat with a layer of metal“plate spoons with silver”types:tinprepare (a metal) for soldering or brazing by applying a thin layer of solder to the surfacetinplate with tinsilvercoat with a layer of silver or a silver amalgamnickelplate with nickelelectroplatecoat with metal by electrolysis
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any flat platelike body structure or parttypes:operculuma hard flap serving as a cover for (a) the gill slits in fishes or (b) the opening of the shell in certain gastropods when the body is retractedcombciliated comb-like swimming plate of a ctenophorefrill(paleontology) a bony plate that curves upward behind the skull of many ceratopsian dinosaurslaminaa thin plate or layer (especially of bone or mineral)lamina arcus vertebraelamina of the vertebral arch; the flattened posterior part of the vertebral arch from which the spinous process extendstype of:anatomical structure, bodily structure, body structure, complex body part, structurea particular complex anatomical part of a living thing
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the thin under portion of the forequartertype of:cut of beefcut of meat from beef cattle
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(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to scoresynonyms: home, home base, home plate
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the positively charged electrode in a vacuum tubetype of:anodea positively charged electrode by which electrons leave an electrical device
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structural member consisting of a horizontal beam that provides bearing and anchoragetypes:wall plateplate (a timber along the top of a wall) to support the ends of joists, etc., and distribute the loadtype of:structural membersupport that is a constituent part of any structure or building
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a dental appliance that artificially replaces missing teethsynonyms: dental plate, denturetypes:false teetha removable denturepartial denturea denture replacing one or more teeth in a dental archtype of:dental appliancea device to repair teeth or replace missing teeth
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a rigid layer of the Earth's crust that is believed to drift slowlysynonyms: crustal plate
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