plug

[ pluhg ]

/ plʌg /

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See synonyms for: plug / plugged / plugging on Thesaurus.com

noun

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.

a core or interior segment taken from a larger matrix.

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.

spark plug (def. 1).

a fireplug or hydrant.

a cake of pressed tobacco.

a piece of tobacco cut off for chewing.

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.

Angling. an artificial lure made of wood, plastic, or metal, and fitted with one or more gang hooks, used chiefly in casting.

Geology. neck (def. 14).

Slang. a worn-out or inferior horse.

Informal. a shopworn or unsalable article.

a small piece of sod used especially for seeding a lawn.

a patch of scalp with viable hair follicles that is used as a graft for a bald part of the head.Compare hair transplant.

Slang. punch¹ (def. 1).

Metalworking.

a mandrel on which tubes are formed.
a punch on which a cup is drawn.
a protrusion on a forging die for forming a recess in the work.
a false bottom on a die.

Also called dook. a small piece of wood inserted into masonry as a hold for a nail.

Masonry. See under plug and feathers.

Also called plug hat . a man's tall silk hat.

verb (used with object), plugged, plug·ging.

to stop or fill with or as if with a plug (often followed by up): to plug up a leak; plug a gap.

to insert or drive a plug into.

to secure with or as if with a plug.

to insert (something) as a plug.

to remove a core or a small plug-shaped piece from.

to remove the center of (a coin) and replace it with a baser metal: a plugged nickel.

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.

Slang. to punch with the fist.

Slang. to shoot or strike with a bullet.

verb (used without object), plugged, plug·ging.

to work with stubborn persistence (often followed by along or away): You're doing a fine job—just keep plugging. Some writers will plug away at the same novel for several years.

Informal. to publicize insistently: Whenever he gets the chance, he's plugging for his company.

Slang. to shoot or fire shots.

Verb Phrases

plug in,

to connect to an electrical power source: Plug the TV set in over there.
Informal. to add or include; incorporate: They still have to plug in more research data.

plug into,

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.
Informal. to feel an affinity for; like; understand: Some kids just don't plug into sports in school.

plug up, to become plugged: The drain in the sink plugs up every so often.

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Idioms about plug

pull the plug on, Informal.

to discontinue or terminate: The government has threatened to pull the plug on further subsidies.
to disconnect life-sustaining equipment from (a moribund patient).

Origin of plug

1620–30; <Dutch; cognate with German Pflock

OTHER WORDS FROM plug

plug·ga·ble, adjectiveplug·ging·ly, adverbplugless, adjectivepluglike, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use plug in a sentence

On Tuesday, just two days before the planned listing, regulators in Shanghai pulled the plug, at least temporarily.
China’s markets welcome homegrown tech—but Ant’s suspended IPO is a reminder of the risks|Grady McGregor|November 7, 2020|Fortune
After receiving the notice, Ant Group, reading the writing on the wall, pulled the plug on its Hong Kong listing.
Why regulators sidelined Ant Financial’s record-setting IPO|rhhackettfortune|November 3, 2020|Fortune
With an 800-volt fast charger, it can pull enough current for 100 miles of driving after just 10 minutes on the plug.
The 2022 GMC electric Hummer looks a lot different than you might expect|Stan Horaczek|October 21, 2020|Popular-Science
South Africa is now putting the electrical plugs and sockets the nation has relied on for generations on the road to retirement.
South Africa’s unusual electrical plugs and sockets are headed for retirement|Brian Browdie|October 17, 2020|Quartz

You’d be out a nice chunk of change had you pulled the plug back then.
Investors pull back on vaccine jitters and earnings woes|Bernhard Warner|October 14, 2020|Fortune
Hundreds of millions of people were accustomed to toting these objects around, plugging them in to recharge them, and using them.
Is Wearable Technology a Fad or the Future?|Daniel Gross|January 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When the revolution comes, Suze Orman will likely be plugging away on CNBC, giving the same old financial advice.
Can Suze Orman Save America?|Adam Auriemma|November 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
While Washington dithers over Benghazi, AP-gate, and the IRS, advocates for immigrants just keep plugging along.
How the White House Scandals Help Immigration Reform Move Forward|Patricia Murphy|May 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
That means plugging the holes in our immigration and visa system.
The Boston Bombing Is Impacting the Immigration Debate—and It Should|Lloyd Green|April 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The truth, which is that the Republic will probably keep plugging along no matter who is in office, does not.
Ask the Blogger: How About That Election?|Megan McArdle|November 5, 2012|DAILY BEAST
As the old Turks kept plugging it in fairly hot, I sat quiet in Birdwood's dugout for a quarter of an hour.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
He was plugging the hole himself with a mixture of butter and cow dung which he was poking in with a stick!
The Cradle of Mankind|W.A. Wigram
Now and then I'd come across a little pop-gun pistol, just about right for plugging teeth with, which I'd throw out the window.
Sixes and Sevens|O. Henry
While he was speaking my companion busied himself in carefully plugging up the hole in the rock.
The Moon Metal|Garrett P. Serviss
It is time for another senator, and who do you suppose is plugging for it, and opening hogsheads of money?
David Dunne|Belle Kanaris Maniates

British Dictionary definitions for plug

plug

/ (plʌɡ) /

noun

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

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

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

Also called: volcanic plug a mass of solidified magma filling the neck of an extinct volcano

See sparking plug

a cake of pressed or twisted tobacco, esp for chewing
a small piece of such a cake

angling a weighted artificial lure with one or more sets of hooks attached, used in spinning

a seedling with its roots encased in potting compost, grown in a tray with compartments for each individual plant

informal a recommendation or other favourable mention of a product, show, etc, as on television, on radio, or in newspapers

slang a shot, blow, or punch (esp in the phrase take a plug at)

informal the mechanism that releases water to flush a lavatory (esp in the phrase pull the plug)

mainly US an old horse

pull the plug on informal to put a stop to

verb plugs, plugging or plugged

(tr) to stop up or secure (a hole, gap, etc) with or as if with a plug

(tr) to insert or use (something) as a plugto plug a finger into one's ear

(tr) informal to make favourable and often-repeated mentions of (a song, product, show, etc), esp on television, on radio, or in newspapers

(tr) slang to shoot with a gunhe plugged six rabbits

(tr) slang to punch or strike

(intr; foll by along, away, etc) informal to work steadily or persistently

Derived forms of plug

plugger, noun

Word Origin for plug

C17: from Middle Dutch plugge; related to Middle Low German plugge, German Pflock

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with plug

plug

In addition to the idiom beginning with plug

plug away at
plugged in, be

also see:

peg (plug) away at
pull the plug on

plug

Idioms about plug

Origin of plug

OTHER WORDS FROM plug

Words related to plug

How to use plug in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for plug

Derived forms of plug

Word Origin for plug

Other Idioms and Phrases with plug