plater

American

[play-ter, plat-er] / ˈpleɪ tər, ˈplæt ər /

noun

a person or thing that plates.
an inferior race horse.

plater British

/ ˈpleɪtə /

noun

a person or thing that plates
horse racing
1. a mediocre horse entered chiefly for minor races
2. a blacksmith who shoes racehorses with the special type of light shoe used for racing

"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

Etymology

Origin of plater

First recorded in 1710–20; plate ¹ + -er ¹

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.

See Examples For:

plater

Mr Paterson, a plater and shipyard worker who was walking home after a curry night with his friend and cousin, suffered "significant external and internal" injuries.

From BBC ● Nov. 17, 2025

Alex Logan started to learn his trade as a shipbuilder at the age of 16 and has spent his entire working life at the Ferguson shipyard as a plater.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2025

Nathan Wyllie, 19, is being trained as a plater.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2022

Sometimes a halterman develops a plater into a first-class racer, risks the $200 or more entry fee to put him in a rich stake or handicap race.

From Time Magazine Archive

"Now, Mick," asked the plater, "what size is the plate?"

From More Toasts by Marion Dix Mosher

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023