Pleiades, the
1062
United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
→ see colour photo on page A39
Plei·a·des, the /'pleərəidi:z||'pli:-/ 1 a group of stars in the
CONSTELLATION called TAURUS 2 in ancient Greek MYTHOL-
OGY, the seven daughters of Atlas, who were changed into
stars by Zeus
pleis·to·cene /'plaɪstəsi:n/ adj of the period in the Earth's
history which started about 1,000,000 years ago and lasted
about 800,000 years, when much of the Earth was covered
with ice
ple·na·ry /'pli:nəri/ adj [no comp.] fml or tech 1 (of a meeting)
attended by everyone who has the right to attend: Will you
be at the plenary session of the conference? 2 (of power of
government) complete; without limit: The envoy was given
plenary powers to negotiate with the rebels.
plen·i·po·ten·tia·ry /ˌplenɪpə'tenʃərɪl-fieri/ n, adj fml or tech
(someone) having full power to take action or make deci-
sions, especially as a representative of their government in a
foreign country: [after n] a minister plenipotentiary
plen·i·tude /'plenɪtju:d||-tu:d/ n [U] pomp 1 completeness;
fullness 2 plenty; a great amount
plen·te·ous /'plentiəs/ adj especially post plentiful: a plenteous
harvest —ly adv —ness n [U]
plen·ti·ful /'plentɪfəl/ adj (more than) enough in quantity: a
plentiful supply of cheap fuel —ly adv: a cupboard plentifully
stocked with food
plen·ty¹ /'plenti/ pron often apprec a large quantity or number;
enough or more than enough: 'Do you need any more
money?' 'No, we have £100 and that's plenty.' | Make sure there
is plenty (of food) for everyone. | If you want some chairs,
there are plenty more in here. | I gave the boys plenty to eat. |
Plenty of foreign firms have set up factories here. | There's
plenty of room for everyone inside. → compare FEW, LOT¹
plenty² n [U] fml 1 the state of having a large supply of
something, especially of what is needed for life: In years of
plenty everyone has enough to eat. 2 in plenty in large
supply; enough: It was boom time, and there was work in
plenty for everyone. → see also HORN OF PLENTY
plenty³ adv infml 1 quite: There's no need to add any more – it's
plenty big enough already. 2 AmE infml to quite a large degree;
very: I'm plenty hungry, you guys.
ple·o·nas·m /'pli:ənæzəm/ n [C;U] tech (a) use of more words
than are needed to express an idea: The phrase 'an apple
divided into two halves' is a pleonasm. —nastic
/ˌpli:ə'næstɪk/ adj
Ples·sey v. Fer·gu·son /ˌpləsi vɜ:səs 'fɜ:gəsən||-vɜ:rsəs
'fɜ:r-/ a decision by the US Supreme Court in 1896 that the
SEGREGATION (=separation) of African Americans and white
Americans was legal, as long as African Americans were
given services, such as schools or restaurants, that were
described as SEPARATE BUT EQUAL services. The decision
specifically concerned segregation on trains, but led in some
states to separate schools, hotels, restaurants, and seats in
theatres, buses etc. The decision made in the famous court
case of Plessey v. Ferguson was changed in 1954 by the
Supreme Court's decision in the case of BROWN V. BOARD OF
EDUCATION OF TOPEKA. → see also CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
pleth·o·ra /'pleθərə/ n [S(σ)] fml an amount or supply much
greater than is needed or than one can deal with: a plethora
of suggestions | a plethora of classical music on the radio
pleu·ri·sy /'plʊərɪsi/ n [U] a disease of the thin inner
covering of the chest that surrounds the lungs, causing pain
in the chest and sides
Plex·i·glass /'pleksi,glɑ:s||-,glæs/ trademark, AmE for PERSPEX
pli·a·ble /'plaɪəbəl/ adj 1 easily bent without breaking: pli-
able metal 2 able and willing to change or to accept new
ways and ideas; ADAPTABLE 3 usually derog easily influenced;
pliant —bility /ˌplaɪə'bləti/ n [U]
pli·ant /'plaɪənt/ adj 1 usually derog easily influenced; accept-
ing the wishes or commands of others 2 PLIABLE (1,2) —ly
adv —ancy n [U]
pli·ers /'plaɪəz||-ərz/ n [P] a small tool made of two crossed
pieces of metal with long flat jaws at one end, used to hold
small things or to bend and cut wire → compare PINCERS;
see PAIR (USAGE) and see picture at TOOL
plight¹ /plaɪt/ n [C usually sing.] a (bad, serious, or sad)
condition or situation: We are all moved by the plight of these
poor homeless children.
plight² v plight one's troth old use to make a promise of
marriage
plim·soll /'plɪmsəl, -səul/ also gymshoe BrE || sneaker
AmE — n a light shoe with a top made of heavy cloth and a
flat rubber bottom, used especially for games and sports →
see PAIR (USAGE)
'Plimsoll line also 'Plimsoll mark n [C] a line painted on
the outside of a ship, showing the depth to which it can
safely be allowed to float in the water when it is loaded
plinth /plɪnθ/ n a square block, usually of stone, which forms
the base of a PILLAR or STATUE
Plin·y the El·der /ˌplɪni ði 'eldər/ (23-79 AD) an ancient
Roman writer known for his Natural History, a very long
book about plants, animals, minerals, etc. He was killed when
Mount VESUVIUS erupted (ERUPT), and he was the UNCLE of
Pliny the Younger.
Pliny the 'Younger (?61-113 AD) an ancient Roman politi-
cian and writer known for his letters, which provide a
detailed picture of Roman life at that time. He was the
NEPHEW of Pliny the Elder.
Pli·o·cene, pliocene /'plaɪəsi:n/ adj belonging to the
period in the Earth's history that started about thirteen
million years ago and lasted about twelve million years
PLO, the /ˌpi: el 'əu/ abbrev. for the Palestine Liberation
Organization; a political group of Palestinians which was led
by Yasser ARAFAT from 1969 to 2004. Its original aim was to
destroy the state of Israel, but more recently it has worked to
establish a separate state of Palestine existing together with
Israel. → see also PALESTINE NATIONAL AUTHORITY
plod /plɒd||plɑ:d/ v -dd- 1 [+adv/prep] to walk slowly along,
especially with difficulty and great effort; TRUDGE: The cart-
horse plodded along/plodded up the hill pulling the load
behind it. 2 [+adv/prep, especially AWAY, ON] to work steadily,
especially at something uninteresting: She plods away qui-
etly in her corner. | I'll plod on (=continue to work) for
another hour and then take a break.
Plod, P.C. also Mr Plod (the policeman) BrE a humor-
ous and insulting name for a police officer, especially an
old-fashioned British police officer who is not very intelli-
gent
plod·der /'plɒdə||'plɑ:-/ n usually derog a slow, not very clever,
but steady worker who often succeeds in the end
plonk¹ /plɒŋk||plɑ:ŋk, plɔ:ŋk/ n [S] infml a sound like some-
thing dropping onto or into a metal object —plonk adv
[+prep] It fell plonk onto the floor.
plonk² v [T+obj+adv/prep] infml to put, especially heavily or with
force: Just plonk those parcels down over there. | She plonked
herself in the chair and refused to move.
plonk³ n [U] infml, especially BrE & Austr E cheap wine
plop¹ /plɒp||plɑ:p/ n [S] infml a sound like something solid
dropping smoothly into liquid: There was a loud plop as the
soap fell into the bath. —plop adv [+prep] The soap fell plop
into the bath.
plop² v -pp- [+adv/prep, especially into] infml to fall with or make a
plop: The stone plopped into the stream.
plo·sive /'pləusɪv/ adj, n tech (a consonant sound such as /t/
or /g/) made by stopping the air completely and then
suddenly letting it out of the mouth
plot¹ /plɒt||plɑ:t/ n 1 the set of connected events on which a
story, play, film etc, is based: The plot was so complicated that
I couldn't follow it. 2 a secret plan to do something harmful,
needing combined action by several people: an IRA bomb
plot | [+to-v] The police have uncovered a plot to assassinate
the president. 3 a small marked or measured piece of ground
for building or growing things: I grow potatoes on my little
plot of land. | a vegetable plot 4 AmE for GROUND PLAN 5 the
plot thickens humor a phrase used when events seem to be
becoming more difficult to understand
plot² v -tt- 1 [(against);T] (of a group of people) to make a
secret plan for (something harmful): They're plotting against
him. | They're plotting his murder. | [+to-v] They're plotting to
kill him. 2 [T] to mark, calculate, or follow (the position of a
moving aircraft or ship) on a map or using RADAR: The