master plan
noun
a general plan or program for achieving an objective.
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master plan
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master-plan
master-planverb (used with object)to construct a master plan for.
master plan
1 Americannoun
master-plan
2
American
[mas-ter-plan, mah-ster-]
/ ˈmæs tərˌplæn, ˈmɑ stər- /
verb (used with object)
master-planned,
master-planning
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to construct a master plan for.
to master-plan one's career.
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to develop or improve (land, a community, a building complex, or the like) through a long-range plan that balances and harmonizes all elements.
The engineers master-planned the island to provide for increases in the tourist population.
master plan
British
noun
Etymology
Origin of master plan
First recorded in 1925–30
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A UC spokesperson said the state’s master plan, which guides how California’s three public higher education systems work together, should be reimagined “for today’s higher education needs” but did not directly address the bills.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
A 2016 draft master plan earmarks the building as a veteran multipurpose union with a cafeteria as an alternate use.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Authorities in Vietnam's capital have been on a demolition blitz, knocking down thousands of homes to make way for bridges and other infrastructure projects as part of a 100-year master plan approved last month.
From Barron's ● Jun. 24, 2026
Kant didn’t set out with a master plan.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
Each block was built to the same design, just as each of the ten camps, from California to Arkansas, was built to a common master plan.
From "Farewell to Manzanar" by Jeanne Houston
It's safe to assume that, in the over five decades of Decembers since Kennedy's first master-plan, the White House has been home to a few women who have no personal fondness for gingerbread or tinsel.
From Salon ● Dec. 12, 2020
The most recent master-plan shows a mixed-use scheme for 1,000 new homes in addition to a range of commercial, leisure and community uses, including a park and ride facility and a school.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2019
Many have tried to master-plan the vibrancy of an organic city; most have failed.
From Slate ● Oct. 25, 2017
Both will depend on master-plan designs to be selected after competitions that will begin in 30 days, the Democratic governor said.
From Reuters ● Oct. 20, 2014
He had talked to Mr. Dosson by the hour about his master-plan of making the touchy folks themselves fall into line, but had never dreamed this man would subsidise him as an interesting struggler.
From The Reverberator by Henry James
The latest Census Bureau data show that some of the fastest-growing cities are often sitting in the distant orbit of a larger city and centered on booming master-planned communities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
Spanning 30,000 acres, three counties and four zip codes, the Villages is a meticulously-landscaped master-planned community known for sunshine, socialising and an endless supply of recreational fun for those over the age of 55.
From BBC ● May 1, 2026
Modern fire-prevention strategies already are being implemented in new master-planned communities in Southern California, where home builders have the hindsight of previous disasters and implement tighter building codes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2025
The late William Lyon was a prominent developer, yes, but far more fundamental to Orange County is his contemporary, Don Bren, whose Irvine Co. spans the county’s eras, from rancho days to master-planned suburbs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2024
“Spanish Castle Resort is truly a one-of-a-kind master-planned resort community,” says Tammie Freeman, a broker with Venture Real Estate Group.
From Seattle Times ● May 3, 2024
Architects Whitney Smith and Wayne Williams are master-planning 80,000 acres to be called California City, in which more than 8,000 families have already invested some $15 million.
From Time Magazine Archive
Pereira and Luckman's biggest master-planning job to date: overall supervision of U.S.
From Time Magazine Archive
Pereira and Luckman landed their first big overall master-planning job in 1951: a huge guided-missile test center at Florida's Patrick Air Force Base.
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
