plage

American  

[plahzh] / plɑʒ /

noun

1. a sandy bathing beach at a seashore resort.

2. Astronomy. a luminous area in the sun's chromosphere that appears in the vicinity of a sunspot.

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plage British  

/ plɑːʒ /

noun

1. astronomy a bright patch in the sun's chromosphere

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plage Scientific  

/ pläzh /

1. A bright and intensely hot area in the Sun's chromosphere, usually associated with a sunspot. It is typically brighter than its surroundings but may be indistinguishable due to lack of contrast. Plages are sources of strong ultraviolet radiation.

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Etymology

Origin of plage

First recorded in 1885–90; from French, from Italian piaggia, from Late Latin plagia “shore,” noun use of feminine of plagius “horizontal,” from Greek plágia (neuter plural) “sides (of a mountain), flanks (of an army),” noun use of plágios “oblique, slanting, sideways”; plagio-

Example Sentences

He believes the artist is referencing the student uprising in Paris in 1968, which had the slogan "sous les pavés, la plage!"

From BBC

“Plague” comes from the Middle English plage, which comes from the Latin plaga, “blow” — as in, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, “a blow, smiting, slaughter.”

From New York Times

Following an hour of games with seven players on a side, campers walked to a park for football de plage: beach soccer.

From New York Times

In an echo of the 1968 Paris uprisings, a large sign in French, erected over the main protest area in the Admiralty district, read: “Sous les pavés, la plage!”

From Time

“Tender Is the Night” so perfectly captures “sur la plage” at the French Riviera that readers might well be advised to apply sunscreen before diving into the novel.

From New York Times