zinc-plate, n.

zinc-plate
http://www.oed.com/dictionary/zinc-plate_n%3Ftab%3Dmeaning_and_use
First published 1921; not fully revised

# zinc-platenoun

## Factsheet

### What does the noun zinc-plate mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun zinc-plate. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

#### Entry status

OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.

### How common is the noun zinc-plate?

Fewer than 0.01occurrences per million words in modern written English

1800 | 0.0014
1810 | 0.0024
1820 | 0.0033
1830 | 0.0033
1840 | 0.0037
1850 | 0.0041
1860 | 0.0047
1870 | 0.0052
1880 | 0.0045
1890 | 0.0037
1900 | 0.0034
1910 | 0.0029
1920 | 0.0025
1930 | 0.0019
1940 | 0.0014
1950 | 0.0013
1960 | 0.0009
1970 | 0.0007
1980 | 0.0006
1990 | 0.0005
2000 | 0.0004
2010 | 0.0004

### Where does the noun zinc-plate come from?

Earliest known use

1820s

The earliest known use of the noun zinc-plate is in the 1820s.

OED's only evidence for zinc-plate is from 1823, in the writing of John Badcock, writer and journalist.

### Nearby entries

1. zinco-, comb. form
2. zincode, n. 1839–
3. zincograph, n. 1888–
4. zincograph, v. 1865–
5. zincographer, n. 1839–
6. zincographic, adj. 1850–
7. zincography, n. 1834–
8. zincoid, n. 1842–
9. zinc orange, n. 1918–
10. zincous, adj. 1842–
11. zinc-plate, n.1823–
12. zinc-powder, n. 1881–
13. zinc roof, n. 1883–
14. zinc spar, n. 1796–
15. zinc-sponge, n. 1902–
16. zinc sulphide, n. 1851–
17. zinc white, n. 1847–
18. zincy, adj. 1757–
19. zinc yellow, n. 1847–
20. zindabad, int. & n. 1930–
21. zindan, n. 1844–

## Meaning & use

1. 1823–
   = zinc-foil n.
   1. 1823

      > A zinc plate of ten inches was immersed in the liquid.

      J. Badcock, Domestic Amusements 126
   metal industry
   1. zinc-plate 1823–
      = zinc-foil, n.
   2. zinc-foil 1851–
      Thin sheet zinc.
   View in Historical Thesaurus
   1. zinc-plate 1823–
      = zinc-foil, n.
   View in Historical Thesaurus

## Frequency

zinc-plate typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.

zinc-plate is in frequency band 1, which contains words occurring fewer than 0.001 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands

Frequency data is computed programmatically, and should be regarded as an estimate.

### Frequency of zinc-plate, n., 1800–2010

* Occurrences per million words in written English

Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.

The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.

For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.

Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.

Decade | Frequency per million words
--- | ---
1800 | 0.0014
1810 | 0.0024
1820 | 0.0033
1830 | 0.0033
1840 | 0.0037
1850 | 0.0041
1860 | 0.0047
1870 | 0.0052
1880 | 0.0045
1890 | 0.0037
1900 | 0.0034
1910 | 0.0029
1920 | 0.0025
1930 | 0.0019
1940 | 0.0014
1950 | 0.0013
1960 | 0.0009
1970 | 0.0007
1980 | 0.0006
1990 | 0.0005
2000 | 0.0004
2010 | 0.0004

Originally published as part of the entry for zinc, n.

zinc, n. was first published in 1921; not fully revised.