place settings
an American place setting
a British place setting
1napkin/serviette6fish knife2side plate7butter knife3fork8soup spoon4plate9wine glass5knife10dessertspoon
'place ,setting n an arrangement of knives, forks, spoons, glasses etc, to be used by one person when eating at a table
places of 'interest n [P] the places, such as MUSEUMS, historic buildings etc, in an area which tourists go to see: There are many places of interest in and around Oxford, including the Botanical Gardens, the Colleges and, a short distance away, the historic market town of Abingdon.
plac·id /'plæsɪd/ adj 1 (of a person or animal) not easily made angry or excited: a placid child/disposition 2 (of a thing) calm; peaceful: the placid surface of the lake —~ly adv —~ness, ~ity /plə'sɪdʒi/ n [U]
plac·ing /ˈpleɪsɪŋ/ n tech a sale of shares, STOCKs, or BONDS by a company to people or institutions who have agreed in advance to buy them
pla·gia·ris·m /'pleɪdʒərɪzəm/ n 1 [U] the action of plagiarizing 2 [C] a plagiarized idea, phrase, story etc: an article full of plagiarisms —-rist n
pla·gia·rize also -rise BrE /'pleɪdʒərɪz/ v [ɒt] to take (words, ideas etc) from (someone else's work) and use them in one's own work without admitting one has done so. If you plagiarize at university in Britain or the US you may be refused a degree: Half the ideas in his talk were plagiarized from an article I wrote last year.
plague¹ /pleɪg/ n 1 [C] an attack of disease causing death and spreading quickly to a large number of people: Europe suffered many plagues in the Middle Ages. 2 [(the) U] a very infectious disease that produces high fever, swellings on the body, and death, especially BUBONIC PLAGUE → see also BLACK DEATH 3 [C+of] a widespread, uncontrollable, and harmful mass or number: a plague of rats/insects 4 a plague on someone/something lit (used as a curse to express the wish that someone/something will suffer)
plague² v [T] 1 to cause continual discomfort, suffering, or trouble to: She's been plagued by back pain all her life. 2 [(with)] to annoy, especially by some repeated action: He's been plaguing me with silly questions all day!
ice /pleɪs/ n pl. plaice [C;U] a flat sea fish commonly eaten plaid /plaed/ n 1 [U] thick material having a pattern of squares formed by brightly coloured crossing bands, especially of a sort (TARTAN) originally from Scotland 2 [C] a piece of plaid worn over the shoulder and across the chest by Scotsmen as part of their NATIONAL COSTUME
Plaid Cym-ru /,plald 'kAmri/ a political party in Wales which wants Wales to become an independent country, and also wants the Welsh language to be used more. It has several MPs in the British parliament and the Welsh Assembly.
plain¹ /pleɪn/ adj 1 simple; without anything added; without decoration: plain food | You should wear a plain blouse with this checked skirt. | (fig.) The plain fact is that we just can't afford it. 2 a) clear; easy to see, hear, or understand: It's quite plain (to me) that you haven't been paying attention. | Explain it in plain English. b) showing clearly, honestly, and exactly what is thought or felt; FRANK: plain speaking | I hope I've made myself plain on this issue. 3 (of paper) without lines 4 euph (especially of a woman) not pretty or good-looking; rather ugly 5 [A] complete; undoubted: It's just plain foolishness to spend all your pay as soon as you get it! 6 as plain as day/as a pike staff/as the nose on your face infml very noticeable or clearly understandable; OBVIOUS → see also PLAINLY ︷ness n [U]
plain² also plains pl. ➞ n a large stretch of flat land: the Great Plains of the US ➔ see GREAT PLAINS
plain³ adv infml completely: That's just plain stupid!
plain $ ^{4} $ also knit n [U] tech the ordinary stitch in knitting (KNIT): three plain, two purl  $ \rightarrow $ compare PURL
plain-chant /'pleɪntʃaɪnt|-tʃaɪnt/ n [U] PLAINSONG
,plain 'chocolate BrE || dark chocolate AmE — n [U] dark chocolate made without milk and with little sugar → compare MILK CHOCOLATE
,plain-clothes adj (of a policeman) wearing ordinary clothes while on duty, rather than a uniform: a plain-clothes detective investigating a murder
,plain 'flour BrE | all-purpose flour AmE — n [U] flour that contains no BAKING POWDER → compare SELF-RAISING FLOUR
plainly /'pleɪnli/ adv 1 in a PLAIN way: Their conversation could be quite plainly heard by the neighbours. | plainly dressed | I told her plainly what I thought of her scheme. 2 it is clear that; OBVIOUSLY: The door's locked, so plainly they must be out.
,plain 'sailing n [U] a situation or course of action that is free from difficulty or trouble; We've got over the difficult part, so it will be plain sailing from now on.
plain·song /ˈpleɪnsɒŋl-sɒŋ/ also plainchant n [U] a type of old Christian church music for voices that has no HAR-MONY and sounds rather like sung speech
plain·spoken /ˌpleɪnˈspəʊkən/ adj direct and honest in what one says, sometimes in a rude way; BLUNT → compare OUTSPOKEN
plaint/pleint/n poet an expression of great sorrow
plain·tiff /'pleɪntʃ/ also complainant n a person who brings a charge against someone (the DEFENDANT) in a court of law
plain·tive /ˈpleɪntɪv/ adj 1 (usually of a sound) expressing suffering or sorrow: We heard a plaintive whimpering coming from the kitchen - it was the dog, who'd been locked in. 2 expressing gentle sadness: a plaintive love song —ly adv —~ness n [U]
plait¹ /plætˈplert/ especially BrE ‖ braid especially AmE — n [often pl.] a length of something, especially hair, made by plaiting: The little girl wore plaits/wore her hair in plaits. → compare PIGTAIL, PONYTAIL
plait² especially BrE ∥ braid especially AmE — v [T] to form (hair, dried stems of grass etc) into a ropelike length by twisting three or more lengths of it over and under each other; plaited hair | a plaited leather belt
plan¹ /plæn/ n [(for, of)] 1 a) an arrangement, especially one that has been carefully considered, for carrying out some (future) activity: new government plans for reducing inflation | If we keep to the plan, the work should be completed in two weeks. | [+to-v] They devised (=made) a plan to rob a bank. | I'm glad to say the meeting went according to plan (=as we expected) b) a future course of action that has been decided on; aim or intention: His plan is to get a degree in economics and work abroad for two years. | What are your