plait
Americannoun
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a braid, especially of hair or straw.
-
a pleat or fold, as of cloth.
verb (used with object)
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to braid, as hair or straw.
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to make, as a mat, by braiding.
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to pleat.
noun
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a length of hair, ribbon, etc, that has been plaited
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(in Britain) a loaf of bread of several twisting or intertwining parts
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a rare spelling of pleat
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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plaitsimple
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plaitssimple
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have plaitedperfect
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has plaitedperfect
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am plaitingprogressive
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are plaitingprogressive
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is plaitingprogressive
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have been plaitingperfect progressive
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has been plaitingperfect progressive
Past
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plaitedsimple
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had plaitedperfect
-
was plaitingprogressive
-
were plaitingprogressive
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had been plaitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of plait
1350–1400; Middle English pleyt < Middle French pleit < Latin plicitum, neuter of plicitus, past participle of plicāre to fold; see ply 2
Explanation
You might get an odd look if you ask your hairdresser to put your hair in a plait, but she’ll eventually figure out what you want: a braid. Plait, which sounds the same as plate, feels a bit like it’s from a bygone era, though the word is still in use today. A woman wearing a hairstyle with plaits might be on her way to meet Lord Something-or-Other, in the hopes of receiving a marriage proposal. Meanwhile, someone wearing a braided hairdo might be preparing for a night on the town or just a trip to the grocery store.
Vocabulary lists containing plait
Shear Genius: Hairy Vocabulary
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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One Crazy Summer
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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.
“We see the effects of sound in these objects all the time,” Plait told Salon in an email.
From Salon • Jun. 3, 2025
"There is simply no way an alignment of planets can cause an earthquake on Earth. It's literally impossible," astronomer Phil Plait wrote in Slate in 2015.
From Salon • Feb. 9, 2023
Phil Plait: 50 years ago, we were on the moon.
From Washington Post • Apr. 16, 2020
“Their evidence is actually as tenuous as the vacuum of space itself,” Plait wrote.
From Washington Post • May 23, 2019
"I never was so glad to see you, Mrs. Plait and Mr. Barker, in all my days," said Mrs. Puffit.
From Tales and Novels — Volume 01 by Edgeworth, Maria
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.
