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definitions

place

[pleys]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR place ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

verb (used with object), placed, plac·ing.

verb (used without object), placed, plac·ing.

Sports.
  1. to finish among the first three competitors in a race.
  2. to finish second in a horse race, harness race, etc.
to earn a specified standing with relation to others, as in an examination, competition, etc.: He placed fifth in a graduation class of 90.

Idioms

    give place to,
    1. to give precedence or priority to: The old gives place to the new.
    2. to be succeeded or replaced by: Travel by trains has given place to travel by airplanes.
    go places, Informal. to succeed or advance in one's career: He'll never go places if he stays in his hometown.
    in place,
    1. in the correct or usual position or order: Dinner is ready and everything is in place.
    2. in the same spot, without advancing or retreating: Stand by your desk and jog in place for a few minutes of exercise.
    know/keep one's place, to recognize one's position or rank, especially if inferior, and behave or act accordingly: They treated their servants well but expected them always to know their place.
    out of place,
    1. not in the correct or usual position or order: The library books are all out of place.
    2. unsuitable to the circumstances or surroundings; inappropriate: He had always felt out of place in an academic environment. A green suit was out of place at the funeral.
    put someone in his/her place, to lower someone's self-esteem; humble, especially an arrogant person: She put me in my place by reminding me who was boss.
    take place, to happen; occur: The commencement exercises will take place outdoors unless it rains.

Origin of place

before 950; (noun) Middle English, conflation of Old English plæce and Middle French place, both < Latin platea, variant of platēa street, courtyard, area < Greek plateîa broad street, noun use of feminine of platýs broad, flat1; (v.) late Middle English, derivative of the noun; see platy-
Related formsplace·a·ble, adjectiveplace·less, adjectiveplace·less·ly, adverbpre·place, verb (used with object), pre·placed, pre·plac·ing.un·placed, adjectivewell-placed, adjective

Synonyms for place

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR place ON THESAURUS.COM
1. location, locale, locality, site. 10. rank, employment. See position. 11. charge, responsibility. 14. section, sector. 30. situate, station. See put. 32. locate, set, deposit, lay, seat. 35. hire.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for places

neighborhood, point, house, site, community, seat, village, home, city, apartment, zone, area, field, spot, part, corner, situation, hole, town, berth

Examples from the Web for places

Contemporary Examples of places

Historical Examples of places

  • I've knocked about in all sorts of places, and it won't be the first time I've served as cook.

    Brave and Bold

    Horatio Alger

  • It must not be supposed that this spring day in the spring places had reformed his manner of delivery.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • The ablutionary fluid is most difficult to be had in places where water is abundant.

  • Slowly and reluctantly, the sailors took their places, for Robert was a favorite with them.

    Brave and Bold

    Horatio Alger

  • There are places where no girl can get work unless she's pulchritudinous.

British Dictionary definitions for places

place

noun

a particular point or part of space or of a surface, esp that occupied by a person or thing
a geographical point, such as a town, city, etc
a position or rank in a sequence or order
  1. an open square lined with houses of a similar type in a city or town
  2. (capital when part of a street name)Grosvenor Place
space or room
a house or living quarters
a country house with grounds
any building or area set aside for a specific purpose
a passage in a book, play, film, etcto lose one's place
proper or appropriate position or timehe still thinks a woman's place is in the home
right or original positionput it back in its place
suitable, appropriate, or customary surroundings (esp in the phrases out of place, in place)
right, prerogative, or dutyit is your place to give a speech
appointment, position, or joba place at college
position, condition, or stateif I were in your place
  1. a space or seat, as at a dining table
  2. (as modifier)place mat
maths the relative position of a digit in a numberSee also decimal place
any of the best times in a race
horse racing
  1. Britishthe first, second, or third position at the finish
  2. US and Canadianthe first or usually the second position at the finish
  3. (as modifier)a place bet
theatre one of the three unitiesSee unity (def. 8)
archaic an important position, rank, or role
all over the place in disorder or disarray
another place British parliamentary procedure
  1. (in the House of Commons) the House of Lords
  2. (in the House of Lords) the House of Commons
give place to someone to make room for or be superseded by someone
go places informal
  1. to travel
  2. to become successful
in place of
  1. instead of; in lieu ofgo in place of my sister
  2. in exchange forhe gave her it in place of her ring
know one's place to be aware of one's inferior position
pride of place the highest or foremost position
put someone in his place to humble someone who is arrogant, conceited, forward, etc
take one's place to take up one's usual or specified position
take the place of to be a substitute for
take place to happen or occur
the other place facetious
  1. (at Oxford University) Cambridge University
  2. (at Cambridge University) Oxford University

verb (mainly tr)

to put or set in a particular or appropriate place
to find or indicate the place of
to identify or classify by linking with an appropriate contextto place a face
to regard or view as beingto place prosperity above sincerity
to make (an order, a bet, etc)
to find a home or job for (someone)
to appoint to an office or position
(often foll by with) to put under the care (of)
to direct or aim carefully
(passive) British to cause (a racehorse, greyhound, athlete, etc) to arrive in first, second, third, or sometimes fourth place
(intr) US and Canadian (of a racehorse, greyhound, etc) to finish among the first three in a contest, esp in second position
to invest (funds)
to sing (a note) with accuracy of pitch
to insert (an advertisement) in a newspaper, journal, etc

Word Origin for place

C13: via Old French from Latin platēa courtyard, from Greek plateia, from platus broad; compare French plat flat

Place

noun

Francis. 1771–1854, British radical, who campaigned for the repeal (1824) of the Combination Acts, which forbade the forming of trade unions, and for parliamentary reform
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for places

place

n.

c.1200, "space, dimensional extent, room, area," from Old French place "place, spot" (12c.) and directly from Medieval Latin placea "place, spot," from Latin platea "courtyard, open space; broad way, avenue," from Greek plateia (hodos) "broad (way)," fem. of platys "broad" (see plaice).

Replaced Old English stow and stede. From mid-13c. as "particular part of space, extent, definite location, spot, site;" from early 14c. as "position or place occupied by custom, etc.; position on some social scale;" from late 14c. as "inhabited place, town, country," also "place on the surface of something, portion of something, part," also, "office, post." Meaning "group of houses in a town" is from 1580s.

Also from the same Latin source are Italian piazza, Catalan plassa, Spanish plaza, Middle Dutch plaetse, Dutch plaats, German Platz, Danish plads, Norwegian plass. Wide application in English covers meanings that in French require three words: place, lieu, and endroit. Cognate Italian piazza and Spanish plaza retain more of the etymological sense.

To take place "happen" is from mid-15c. To know (one's) place is from c.1600; hence figurative expression put (someone) in his or her place (1855). Place of worship attested from 1689, originally in official papers and in reference to assemblies of dissenters from the Church of England. All over the place "in disorder" is attested from 1923.

place

v.

mid-15c., "to determine the position of;" also "to put (something somewhere)," from place (n.). In the horse racing sense of "to achieve a certain position" (usually in the top three finishers; in U.S., specifically second place) it is first attested 1924, from earlier meaning "to state the position of" (among the first three finishers), 1826. Related: Placed; placing. To take place "to happen, be accomplished" (mid-15c., earlier have place, late 14c.), translates French avoir lieu.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with places

place

In addition to the idiom beginning with place

  • place in the sun

also see:

  • all over the place
  • between a rock and a hard place
  • fall in place
  • friend in court (high places)
  • go places
  • have one's heart in the right place
  • in place
  • in someone's shoes (place)
  • instead (in place) of
  • in the first place
  • jumping-off place
  • know one's place
  • out of place
  • pride of place
  • put someone in his or her place
  • run in place
  • take place
  • take someone's place
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.