plan
[ plan ]
/ plæn /
noun
verb (used with object), planned, plan·ning.
verb (used without object), planned, plan·ning.
to make plans: to plan ahead; to plan for one's retirement.
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Origin of plan
synonym study for plan
1. Plan, project, design, scheme imply a formulated method of doing something. Plan refers to any method of thinking out acts and purposes beforehand: What are your plans for today? A project is a proposed or tentative plan, often elaborate or extensive: an irrigation project. Design suggests art, dexterity, or craft (sometimes evil and selfish) in the elaboration or execution of a plan, and often tends to emphasize the purpose in view: a misunderstanding brought about by design. A scheme is apt to be either a speculative, possibly impracticable, plan, or a selfish or dishonest one: a scheme to swindle someone.
historical usage of plan
The English noun plan comes from the French noun plan “a sketch, diagram, drawing, ground plan, plane surface,” from the adjective plan “flat, even, plane (in geometry).” French plan is a Latinized form of plain (with the same meanings), from the Latin adjective plānus “flat, level, horizontal, two-dimensional, plane (in geometry).” The French noun plan is also partly an alteration of the earlier French noun plant, a derivative of the verb planter “to plant, drive in, stick in, fix in place,” from Latin plantāre “to set in place, fix in place, plant, transplant.”
The meaning “an organized proposal or scheme of action” first appeared in 1635; the more etymological meaning “a drawing or diagram of an object made by projection on a horizontal plane” appeared in 1664.
The earliest citation for “a formal program for specified benefits” is first recorded in 1912, with specific reference to a savings plan.
The meaning “an organized proposal or scheme of action” first appeared in 1635; the more etymological meaning “a drawing or diagram of an object made by projection on a horizontal plane” appeared in 1664.
The earliest citation for “a formal program for specified benefits” is first recorded in 1912, with specific reference to a savings plan.
OTHER WORDS FROM plan
Definition for plan (2 of 2)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
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British Dictionary definitions for plan
plan
/ (plæn) /
noun
verb plans, planning or planned
Word Origin for plan
C18: via French from Latin plānus flat; compare plane 1, plain 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Idioms and Phrases with plan
plan
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.