plug
Americannoun
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plugs
plural
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a piece of wood or other material used to stop up a hole or aperture, to fill a gap, or to act as a wedge.
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a core or interior segment taken from a larger matrix.
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Electricity. a device to which may be attached the conductors of a cord and which by insertion in a jack, or screwing into a receptacle, establishes contact.
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a fireplug or hydrant.
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a cake of pressed tobacco.
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a piece of tobacco cut off for chewing.
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Informal. the favorable mention of something, as in a lecture, radio show, etc.; advertisement; recommendation.
The actress was happy to give her new show a plug.
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Angling. an artificial lure made of wood, plastic, or metal, and fitted with one or more gang hooks, used chiefly in casting.
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Geology. neck.
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Slang. a worn-out or inferior horse.
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Informal. a shopworn or unsalable article.
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a small piece of sod used especially for seeding a lawn.
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a patch of scalp with viable hair follicles that is used as a graft for a bald part of the head.
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Slang. punch.
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Metalworking.
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a mandrel on which tubes are formed.
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a punch on which a cup is drawn.
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a protrusion on a forging die for forming a recess in the work.
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a false bottom on a die.
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Also called dook. a small piece of wood inserted into masonry as a hold for a nail.
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Masonry. plug and feathers
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Also called plug hat. a man's tall silk hat.
verb (used with object)
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plugs,
present (3rd person singular)
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plugged,
past participle, past
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plugging
present participle
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to stop or fill with or as if with a plug (often followed byup ).
to plug up a leak; plug a gap.
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to insert or drive a plug into.
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to secure with or as if with a plug.
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to insert (something) as a plug.
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to remove a core or a small plug-shaped piece from.
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to remove the center of (a coin) and replace it with a baser metal.
a plugged nickel.
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Informal. to mention (something) favorably, as in a lecture, radio show, etc..
He says he will appear if he can plug his new TV series.
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Slang. to punch with the fist.
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Slang. to shoot or strike with a bullet.
verb (used without object)
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plugs,
present (3rd person singular)
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plugged,
past participle, past
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plugging
present participle
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to work with stubborn persistence (often followed by along oraway ).
You're doing a fine job—just keep plugging. Some writers will plug away at the same novel for several years.
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Informal. to publicize insistently.
Whenever he gets the chance, he's plugging for his company.
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Slang. to shoot or fire shots.
verb phrase
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plug in
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to connect to an electrical power source.
Plug the TV set in over there.
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Informal. to add or include; incorporate.
They still have to plug in more research data.
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plug up to become plugged.
The drain in the sink plugs up every so often.
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plug into
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to connect or become connected by or as if by means of a plug.
The device will plug into any convenient wall outlet. The proposed new departments would eventually plug into the overall organizational plan.
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Informal. to feel an affinity for; like; understand.
Some kids just don't plug into sports in school.
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idioms
noun
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a piece of wood, cork, or other material, often cylindrical in shape, used to stop up holes and gaps or as a wedge for taking a screw or nail
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such a stopper used esp to close the waste pipe of a bath, basin, or sink while it is in use and removed to let the water drain away
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a device having one or more pins to which an electric cable is attached: used to make an electrical connection when inserted into a socket
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Also called: volcanic plug. a mass of solidified magma filling the neck of an extinct volcano
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See sparking plug
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a cake of pressed or twisted tobacco, esp for chewing
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a small piece of such a cake
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angling a weighted artificial lure with one or more sets of hooks attached, used in spinning
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a seedling with its roots encased in potting compost, grown in a tray with compartments for each individual plant
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informal a recommendation or other favourable mention of a product, show, etc, as on television, on radio, or in newspapers
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slang a shot, blow, or punch (esp in the phrase take a plug at )
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informal the mechanism that releases water to flush a lavatory (esp in the phrase pull the plug )
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an old horse
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informal to put a stop to
verb
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(tr) to stop up or secure (a hole, gap, etc) with or as if with a plug
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(tr) to insert or use (something) as a plug
to plug a finger into one's ear
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informal (tr) to make favourable and often-repeated mentions of (a song, product, show, etc), esp on television, on radio, or in newspapers
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slang (tr) to shoot with a gun
he plugged six rabbits
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slang (tr) to punch or strike
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informal (intr; foll by along, away, etc) to work steadily or persistently
Usage
What else does plug mean? Content warning: this article references illegal and illicit drugs. A plug (or the plug) is a person who has the ability to get or supply hard-to-find items, especially drugs.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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plugsimple
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plugssimple
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have pluggedperfect
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has pluggedperfect
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am pluggingprogressive
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are pluggingprogressive
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is pluggingprogressive
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have been pluggingperfect progressive
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has been pluggingperfect progressive
Past
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pluggedsimple
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had pluggedperfect
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was pluggingprogressive
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were pluggingprogressive
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had been pluggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of plug
1620–30; < Dutch; cognate with German Pflock
Explanation
A plug is something that blocks a hole, particularly one that water normally flows through. For some reason, it also means to promote something. If you plug your new book, you sneak it into every conversation. You can buy a plug at a hardware store — it might be made of rubber, so it fits snugly in your kitchen sink drain. There are also accidental plugs that block the flow of water through a pipe, and plugs that fit securely in wall sockets. These plugs form a connection between an electrical source and an appliance, rather than stemming the flow. And to plug means to stop up or block, or alternately, to try hard to promote something.
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:
Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart has enlisted Lady Gaga for a recruitment campaign, convincing the pop icon to trade vocal registers for cash registers in an effort to plug staffing shortages at thousands of outlets.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
The effort to tap what is called ASM gold helps plug a gap.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Numerous music acts have pulled the plug on their upcoming performances with Ed Sheeran in the latest twist of events in the singer’s tour.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Clark said "most labs have different ways of being able to pull the plug", including Anthropic, but said policymakers may need to enforce having one.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Our job was not in itself complicated: Answer the line, match the code name to a number, insert the right plug into the right jack, connect the telephone call.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
The Briton wore ear plugs during each change of ends, just as he did at Wimbledon to maintain his focus and block out any distracting noise.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
The suite came with your standard front-of-the-plane amenities: a bigger screen with remote, bedding, skin-care lotion, socks, eye mask, a reusable water bottle, ear plugs and noise-canceling headphones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
The base this plugs into is already large.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026
When the antibody plugs into the capillary’s transferrin receptor, a portal through the blood-brain barrier opens up.
From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026
He removed the spark plugs and scraped the points and bored the carbon out.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
Standing in front of rows of what look like giant filing cabinets that contain Alps, he told AFP he was excited to have all of NASA's climate data plugged directly into the machine.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
"We've shown that when tissue-resident macrophages don't have EP2 on their surfaces anymore or when that receptor is plugged up by a drug, this decline doesn't happen."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 3, 2026
“Teens have places to be, and parents want to stay plugged in along the way,” Uber said in its announcement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
It argued that going private would provide insulation from volatile quarterly earnings releases, or that Mattel could be plugged into another company’s established distribution flywheel, avoiding the costly effort of building one from scratch.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Maddie flipped the keys and plugged in the cords, and he gave her posting orders over her own telephone.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
An example given of the disguised funding scheme in action: plugging an unexpected shortfall in May 2013.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
His was keep plugging away and it will happen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026
She told The Sunday Times they were "plugging away".
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Rather than plugging into the Texas power grid, Project Kilby will have its own on-site power plant fueled by Chevron’s local natural-gas production.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Lacking wood for the stove most of the time, she took to turning her electric iron upside down, plugging it into the one outlet, and cooking their stew on it.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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.
