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

See Examples For:

license plate

Last week, I was at a parking machine and needed to input my license plate number.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

“The long-existing California license plate 9-series configuration, which began with 1AAA000 in 1980, ended with the production of the 9ZZZ999 plate this year,” said Ronald Ongtoaboc, spokesperson for the state Department of Motor Vehicles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

Alvarado said she was surprised to learn from the Tribune that the insurance fee was funding AI-supported license plate readers.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

But now she had her own sweet ride: “I even put ‘Ms.’ on my license plate, and you should see my grandkids’ faces when Grandma rides up on her purple Harley!”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

It must have been new; it didn’t even have a real license plate.

From "The Parker Inheritance" by Varian Johnson