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plot

American  

[plot] / plɒt /

noun

• plots
  plural

1. a secret plan or scheme to accomplish some purpose, especially a hostile, unlawful, or evil purpose.

   a plot to overthrow the government.

   Synonyms:

   cabal, intrigue

2. Also called storyline. the plan, scheme, or main story of a literary or dramatic work, as a play, novel, or short story.

3. a small piece or area of ground.

   a garden plot;

   burial plot.

4. a measured piece or parcel of land.

   a house on a two-acre plot.

5. a plan, map, diagram, or other graphic representation, as of land, a building, etc.

6. a list, timetable, or scheme dealing with any of the various arrangements for the production of a play, motion picture, etc..

   According to the property plot, there should be a lamp stage left.

7. a chart showing the course of a craft, as a ship or airplane.

8. Artillery. a point or points located on a map or chart.

   target plot.

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verb (used with object)

• plots,
  present (3rd person singular)
• plotted,
  past participle,  past
• plotting
  present participle

1. to plan secretly, especially something hostile or evil.

   to plot mutiny.

   Synonyms:

   frame, hatch, brew

2. to mark on a plan, map, or chart, as the course of a ship or aircraft.

3. to draw a plan or map of, as a tract of land or a building.

4. to divide (land) into plots.

5. to determine and mark (points), as on plotting paper, by means of measurements or coordinates.

6. to draw (a curve) by means of points so marked.

7. to represent by means of such a curve.

8. to devise or construct the plot of (a play, novel, etc.).

9. to prepare a list, timetable, or scheme of (production arrangements), as for a play or motion picture.

   The stage manager hadn't plotted the set changes until one day before the dress rehearsal.

10. to make (a calculation) by graph.

verb (used without object)

• plots,
  present (3rd person singular)
• plotted,
  past participle,  past
• plotting
  present participle

1. to plan or scheme secretly; form a plot; conspire.

2. to devise or develop a literary or dramatic plot.

3. to be marked or located by means of measurements or coordinates, as on plotting paper.

plot ¹ British  

/ plɒt /

noun

1. a secret plan to achieve some purpose, esp one that is illegal or underhand

   a plot to overthrow the government

2. the story or plan of a play, novel, etc

3. military a graphic representation of an individual or tactical setting that pinpoints an artillery target

4. a diagram or plan, esp a surveyor's map

5. informal to lose one's ability or judgment in a given situation

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verb

1. to plan secretly (something illegal, revolutionary, etc); conspire

2. (tr) to mark (a course, as of a ship or aircraft) on a map

3. (tr) to make a plan or map of

4. 1. to locate and mark (one or more points) on a graph by means of coordinates

   2. to draw (a curve) through these points

5. (tr) to construct the plot of (a literary work)

plot ² British  

/ plɒt /

noun

1. a small piece of land

   a vegetable plot

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verb

1. (tr) to arrange or divide (land) into plots

plot Cultural  

1. The organization of events in a work of fiction.

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Synonym Usage

See conspiracy. Plot, conspire, scheme imply secret, cunning, and often unscrupulous planning to gain one's own ends. To plot is to contrive a secret plan of a selfish and often treasonable kind: to plot against someone's life. To conspire is to unite with others in an illicit or illegal machination: to conspire to seize a government. To scheme is to plan ingeniously, subtly, and often craftily for one's own advantage: to scheme how to gain power.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• plotlessness
  noun
• overplot
  verb
• outplot
  verb (used with object)
• preplot
  verb (used with object)
• replot
  verb (used with object)
• plotful
  adjective
• plotless
  adjective
• unplotted
  adjective
• unplotting
  adjective
• well-plotted
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• plots
  plural

Participles

• plotting
  present
• plotted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• plot
  simple
• plots
  simple
• have plotted
  perfect
• has plotted
  perfect
• am plotting
  progressive
• are plotting
  progressive
• is plotting
  progressive
• have been plotting
  perfect progressive
• has been plotting
  perfect progressive

Past

• plotted
  simple
• had plotted
  perfect
• was plotting
  progressive
• were plotting
  progressive
• had been plotting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will plot
  simple
• will have plotted
  perfect
• will be plotting
  progressive
• will have been plotting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of plot

First recorded before 1100; the noun has multiple origins: in the sense “piece of ground,” Middle English: “small area, patch, stain, piece of ground,” Old English: “piece of ground” (origin obscure); in the senses “ground plan, outline, map, scheme,” variant (since the 16th century) of plat ¹, itself partly a variant of Middle English, Old English plot; in the sense “secret plan” (from the 16th century), by association with complot; the verb is derivative of the noun

Explanation

A plot is a scheme, a story, a map charting progress, or a piece of land (as for a garden). To plot is to devise a secret plan, order the events of the story, or track your movement on the map. You could make a whole movie based on the word plot. This could be the plot (story): An evil so-and-so hatches a secret plot (scheme) to follow the explorer to a legendary plot (patch) of land with buried treasure. The explorer plots (draws) the best route to the treasure, but the evil so-and-so steals the plot (map) and gets to the treasure first. What a great story. All that's left is to plot (arrange) the sequence of events for maximum suspense.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

plot plots plotted plotting

It’s in the second half of the novel, after Batter graduates from college, that the plot gains momentum and begins to soar.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

The U.S. flew its bombers out of Fairford, with senior U.S. officials saying they had intelligence of a wider Iranian plot to use drones and other devices to target personnel on the base.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

He visited three times — once on business — in the months leading up to his family trust’s July 2021 purchase of a plot in the ski town of Eden.

From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026

Farmer Chandala Sadamma told AFP that when she sees the red-earth scars where her plot of mango and cashew trees once stood, "I feel like crying".

From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026

But there was no chance for Penelope to share this plot twist with Simon, for Lord Fredrick whimpered with hunger for the chickens, and the situation needed to be addressed at once.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

A Greenpeace report published this month identified businesses based in Singapore and Malaysia which are linked to plots of land in Indonesia where wildfires are burning.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

The U.S. removed all its B-1 bombers from the U.K.’s RAF Fairford air base, a decision stemming from security concerns over suspected terror plots against the facility, American officials said Sunday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

Hundreds of survey plots were established and thousands of seedlings were monitored.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 4, 2026

The above chart plots the monthly income that could be secured with a $100,000 premium.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

He reigned supreme for half a century and his early offerings, Nabucco included, had plots carefully chosen to whip up the Italian people’s desire for self-government, the movement known as the Risorgimento.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

After dismounting, legs jellied, we high-fived and plotted our next move.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

The apartment served as a base camp after he released his memoir, “I Was Wrong,” and plotted a national book tour.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

Absent the top of the internet bubble, the contrasts plotted in the accompanying chart would be even bigger.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026

Their unlikely enemy, who they believe plotted a surreptitious attack, was a museum built to honour a pioneering, nature-loving Korean artist.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

“What have you done with me, witch, sorceress? Who is in the room besides you? Have you plotted to drown me?”

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

“Boys in the alleyway, fondling marbles in their chilblained fingers or plotting Hurley Burley: these would remain foreign to him,” writes Li.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

Ask one of those AI agents that isn’t plotting to take down civilization and boil us all in a giant tub of bacon grease.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

"I know what I did, I know what we did, and I know how it happened. It didn't feel like we were scheming or plotting."

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

Plus, meet the Miami residents plotting Cuba’s future, and see which stocks our investing columnist is watching this week.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

Monday and I used to entertain ourselves, playing hand games, plotting our dance routines, and picking our favorite go-go remixes.

From "Monday's Not Coming" by Tiffany D. Jackson

Related Words

• action
• design
• movement
• narrative
• scenario
• scene
• scheme
• story
• structure
• theme