plain

¹

[ pleyn ]

adjective

, plain·er, plain·est.

1. clear or distinct to the eye or ear: to stand in plain view.

   a plain trail to the river;

   to stand in plain view.

   Synonyms: perspicuous, apparent, unmistakable, intelligible, understandable, lucid

   Antonyms: indistinct

2. clear to the mind; evident, manifest, or obvious:

   to make one's meaning plain.

   Synonyms: transparent, patent, unequivocal, unambiguous, perspicuous, apparent, unmistakable, intelligible, understandable, lucid

   Antonyms: obscure

3. conveying the meaning clearly and simply; easily understood:

   plain talk.

   Synonyms: transparent, patent, unequivocal, unambiguous

4. downright; sheer; utter; self-evident:

   plain folly;

   plain stupidity.

5. free from ambiguity or evasion; candid; outspoken:

   the plain truth of the matter.

   Synonyms: sincere, open, ingenuous, frank, blunt, direct, straightforward, unreserved

6. without special pretensions, superiority, elegance, etc.; ordinary:

   plain people.

   Synonyms: unpretentious

7. not beautiful; physically unattractive or undistinguished:

   a plain face.

8. without intricacies or difficulties.
9. ordinary, simple, or unostentatious:

   Although she was a duchess, her manners were attractively plain.

10. with little or no embellishment, decoration, or enhancing elaboration:

    a plain blue suit.

11. without a pattern, figure, or device:

    a plain fabric.

12. not rich, highly seasoned, or elaborately prepared, as food:

    a plain diet.

13. flat or level:

    plain country.

    Antonyms: hilly

14. unobstructed, clear, or open, as ground, a space, etc.
15. Cards. being other than a face card or a trump.

adverb

1. clearly and simply:

   He's just plain stupid.

noun

1. an area of land not significantly higher than adjacent areas and with relatively minor differences in elevation, commonly less than 500 feet (150 meters), within the area.
2. The Plains. Great Plains.

plain

²

[ pleyn ]

verb (used without object)

, British Dialect.

1. to complain.

plain

¹

/ pleɪn /

verb

1. a dialect or poetic word for complain

plain

²

/ pleɪn /

adjective

1. flat or smooth; level
2. not complicated; clear

   the plain truth

3. not difficult; simple or easy

   a plain task

4. honest or straightforward
5. lowly, esp in social rank or education
6. without adornment or show

   a plain coat

7. (of fabric) without pattern or of simple untwilled weave
8. not attractive
9. not mixed; simple

   plain vodka

10. knitting of or done in plain

noun

1. a level or almost level tract of country, esp an extensive treeless region
2. a simple stitch in knitting made by putting the right needle into a loop on the left needle, passing the wool round the right needle, and pulling it through the loop, thus forming a new loop
3. in billiards
   1. the unmarked white ball, as distinguished from the spot balls
   2. the player using this ball
4. (in Ireland) short for plain porter, a light porter

   two pints of plain, please

adverb

1. (intensifier)

   just plain tired

plain

/ plān /

1. An extensive, relatively level area of land. Plains are present on all continents except Antarctica and are most often located in the interior regions. Because they can occur at almost any altitude or latitude, plains can be humid and forested, semiarid and grass-covered, or arid.
2. A broad, level expanse, such as an area of the sea floor or a lunar mare.

Derived Forms

• ˈplainly, adverb
• ˈplainness, noun

Other Words From

• plain·ly adverb
• plain·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of plain¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English adjective, adverb, and noun plain(e), plein(e), from Old French adjective and noun plain(e), pleine, from Latin plānus “flat, level,” plānum “flat country”

Origin of plain²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English plei(g)nen, plene(n), from Anglo-French plainer, pleiner, Old French plaign-, stem of plaindre, pleindre, from Latin plangere “to strike, beat (the breast, etc.), lament”

Word History and Origins

Origin of plain¹

C14 pleignen, from Old French plaindre to lament, from Latin plangere to beat

Origin of plain²

C13: from Old French: simple, from Latin plānus level, distinct, clear

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in plain sight. in plain sight ( def ).

More idioms and phrases containing plain

• in plain English

Synonym Study

See homely.

Example Sentences

These microbes had been living beneath a vast, flat, sediment-covered plain.

From Science News For Students

If I’m rolling into a Starbucks, in plain sight of lots of foot traffic, and the rack’s right out front, my odds are decent this is enough deterrent to ward off the baddies.

From Popular-Science

One of the main challenges in curing cancer is that unlike foreign invaders, tumor cells are part of the body and so able to hide in plain sight.

From Singularity Hub 

In the US, for instance, the Food and Drug Administration approved chloroquine for treating covid-19, only to reverse itself weeks later after it became plain the drug didn’t work.

From MIT Technology Review

Researchers, led by microbiologist Yuki Morono of the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology in Kochi, examined sediments collected in 2010 from part of the abyssal plain beneath the South Pacific Gyre.

From Science News

Yet, much like the fate that fell the first season, ratings just plain weren't good.

From The Daily Beast

Thanks to the Atlanta case, they can now see another in plain sight.

From The Daily Beast

Because holy hell was that bland, unfunny, uncomfortable, and just plain confusing.

From The Daily Beast

It is already well known that there are oilrigs disguised in plain sight all over the city.

From The Daily Beast

A report by the Cleveland Plain Dealer describes balloons being released into the night sky.

From The Daily Beast

But what a magnificent plain is this we are entering upon: it is of immense extent.

From Project Gutenberg

A far-off volley rumbled over the plain, and a few birds stirred uneasily among the trees.

From Project Gutenberg

There are many more good dwellings on this plain than in the rural portion of Lower Italy.

From Project Gutenberg

The word of the law shall be fulfilled without a lie, and wisdom shall be made plain in the mouth of the faithful.

From Project Gutenberg

Here there is no question of emergency, or enemy pressure, or of haste; so much we see plain enough with our own eyes.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• conventional
• dull
• ordinary
• simple
• traditional