license plate

American  

noun

license plates plural

1. a plate or tag, usually of metal, bearing evidence of official registration and permission, as for the use of a motor vehicle.

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license plate British  

noun

1. Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): numberplate.  a plate mounted on the front and back of a motor vehicle bearing the registration number

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• license plates
  plural

Etymology

Origin of license plate

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

"The Tennessee license plate used to have a sign on it, or a little motto that said, 'Follow me to Tennessee,'" Bessent said.

From Barron's • Jul. 9, 2026

In an online demonstration for The Wall Street Journal, Weinstein showed how a law enforcement officer can search a complete or partial license plate, or terms like “white,” “Chevy,” “pickup truck.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026

Flock promotes its 20 billion license plate reads a month—and ability to solve crimes across jurisdictions—to prospective law-enforcement customers.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026

By that time, one of the law enforcement sources said, officials at Clark’s school were alerted and data from license plate readers were being scanned for any sign of the car he had taken.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

But his license plate said BO HOP, which we did get a pretty good look at, and it had remained at the top of our coolness index right up until today.

From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon